Fate Raining Blades
by ArgoGladius
Summary: In the Aftermath, Emiya Kiritsugu fears what could happen if the Grail was not completely destroyed, so in his limited time, he teaches all he is able to his son, Shirou, leaving him his notes and tools of the past war. Now, the new Grail War beckons, and Shirou finds himself fighting it and discovering skills that will help him achieve victory, and become a true Hero of Justice.
1. Prelude to A New War

_Flames._

 _Everywhere, all consuming._

 _They covered the ground, the buildings, and the people caught in their wake._

 _They burned brightly and searingly, the heat itself blistering, the smoke was black and thick, if you didn't burn, you choked._

 _One figure walked through the physical landscape akin to Western damnation. He walked slowly and staggeringly, his brown eyes staring hollowly ahead of him. All around he could see various people consumed by flames, whether encompassed by it's wrath as they fled, or taken when they tried to help someone else escape it's blaze._

 _He kept walking, unable to help anyone as flames consumed them before he could intervene. The figure continued forward, feeling the breeze of the heat but not reacting to it, he was far too numb to even register the fire anymore, he could only focus on walking forward, and finding a sanctuary in this hellish landscape._

 _Soon, the cries died down, first to moans, to whimpers of pain, to silence._

 _Maybe it was hours or mere moments, but eventually rain clouds gathered and let loose the water they held. Whether it was a response of nature or a miraculous coincidence was unclear, but the figure walked through the ashen remains of the city, once where many people lived and thrived, now a desolate wasteland. The figure was revealed now, without the silhouette of flames._

 _The figure was a boy of no more than six years old, with flame-red hair and hollow brown eyes, eyes devoid of feeling, except for the severe hold of pain and hopelessness. He wore a singed green raincoat, tattered jeans and sneakers, everything had been touched by the flames. The boy himself seemed relatively unmarked, a gash on his forehead leaked blood down his face, but looked to be from falling debris and not from the fire._

 _The boy's legs gave out from under him and he collapsed on the ashen ground, clutching him in it's grasp. He looked to the sky, the grey screen reflective of the ash around him, all around him was grey. No light piercing the darkness, and no darkness consuming him, making it end._

 _The boy felt the life begin to leave him, and he knew in the next few moments that he would die. And that there was no escape._

 _As he began to close his eyes, something in his vision changed. There was a man there, with black unruly hair that was in a rat's nest, weighed down by the rain and covered with flakes of ash. His eyes were black and hollow, but a spark ignited when they met the boy's._

 _The boy felt his hand grasped in the stranger's, and suddenly, the boy felt the life return to him. The chill that had wrapped around him ceased and retreated, feeling the touch of life upon him._

 _"He's alive..." the man whispered as if entranced by some holy figure. "He's alive!" He cried, clutching the boy's hand like a life line, whether for him or the boy it was unclear, but both were clutching that life line regardless. The boy looked at the man's face, there was etched the expression of a man who had been saved, the boy felt envy, to have that feeling of joy so profound and elated. Could he have that?_

 _As the new found warmth slowly spread through his body, the boy's eyes began to flicker close as a golden glow seemed to emanate right in front of him, whether it was a trick of the light or the boy's exhaustion playing with his mind was unclear, but he was far too tired care. The warmth that seemed to increase tenfold was all he needed to beckon him to sleep._

"Senpai?" Came a familiar feminine voice. "Senpai?" It asked again.

Golden eyes cracked open to see the floor of a very familiar shed, they flickered to the direction of the voice to see a similiarily familiar face. A girl fifteen years old of average height, dressed in a tan school uniform. Her hair fell straight to her shoulders, and was a pure violet color, like that of her expressive eyes. A red ribbon held back the hair on her left side.

"Good morning Sakura." The boy, Emiya Shirou, said, a yawn forcing his way out of him as he sat up. Dimly, the red-headed teenager realized the sun was out. "Am I running late?" He asked, trying to clear through the webs of sleep still lingering.

"Oh no you aren't, I just came here a little early today." Sakura Matou replied, a warm and shy smile on her face.

Shirou stood to his feet, loosening his tense muscles and popping some of the joints that had gone stiff from his impromptu resting place.

"That's fine, is Fuji-nee here yet?" He asked, almost trepidatiously.

"She is, and in fine spirits this morning." She said.

"And that means only more work for those of us who move in normal speed." Shirou offered as a joke, dusting off his jumpsuit, noticing his hands were smeared with grease. "I guess I should clean-up a bit before seeing her, I hate to ask, but would you mind making breakfast?" He asked the Sakura.

"I'd be happy to, I'll try to keep Fujimura-Sensei entertained."

"Good luck." He said with a slight smile, heading towards the opposite wing of the estate.

Arriving at the Dojo, Shirou began his daily morning routine of push-ups and sit-ups, working until he built up a good sweat, then in the warm light of the dojo he sat down to engage in some basic breathing exercises. Afterwards he bathed and dressed, heading to the dinning area, and not a moment too soon as his stomach began to growl.

Now dressed in his school uniform, Shirou slid the door open, welcomed by the sight of his guardian leering hungrily towards the kitchen. Fujimura Taiga, or Fuji-nee to Shirou, was a twenty-five year old school teacher who served as his guardian, though ironically he was the more responsible one. She had short brown hair and childlike brown eyes that only scratched the surface of her adventurous youth.

Her grandfather had been an acquaintance of Shirou's adoptive father Kiritsugu, and was more than happy to help keep an eye on the investments of the deceased Emiya and keep his son financially stable. His granddaughter however liked to think she owned the estate, though really the only thing she owned was her moped, and even then she was usually without money, so using Shirou and occasionally Sakura for sustenance was a given.

"Good morning Fuji-nee." Shirou greeted as he took his place at the table.

"Morning." She said, still entranced by the smell of the food coming from the kitchen.

Shirou suppressed a chuckle, instead taking her discarded paper and skimming the articles. The same tag-line was there as before, the gas leaks around town putting people into comas. It was considerably odd as the gas-leaks seemed to take place at seemingly random places and nothing was ever said about what the gas that put people in the hospital was. Some were claiming it the act of terrorists, others claiming the incompetence of the building contractors, either way people were winding up in the hospital.

Shirou had tried to not pay attention to it, but something irked him. There hadn't been any problems with gas-valves before, and the fumes at their worst had only been able to make someone lose consciousness. These sudden leaks had started to occur a few weeks ago, and only became more rampant. Shirou had started to buy into the terrorist idea, but since no one had claimed responsibility, no one could know for sure.

He was brought out of his thoughts when Sakura waded out of the kitchen, laden with several trays of dishes. Instantly, the red-head was on his feet helping her with the trays. As it was all set and the three promptly dug in, Shirou had to admit that Sakura had really come along in their cooking lessons, sure she didn't cook like he did, but her variations on his own recipes weren't bad at all, if anything they had her own personal finesse.

"Sakura," Shirou started a few minutes into the meal. "What do you make of these gas-leaks around town?"

The violet-haired girl pondered this for a moment before shrugging helplessly. "I don't know, Senpai, it sounds pretty bad, but I've made sure all your gas-valves are sealed-tight."

It wasn't the answer he was looking for, but Shirou was grateful none the less.

"Gas-leaks, sas-meaks," Fuji-nee said, her mouth full of food, she swallowed the huge portion of meat and rice in one gulp. "I want you two to go straight home after school, no dilly-dallying, and no helping people out." She said, looking in Shirou's direction when she said it.

"Why is that Fujimura-Sensei?" Sakura asked, the older woman turned to her, and in one of the few moments of maturity she held a face as air of complete seriousness.

"I didn't want to say anything, but I guess you kids need to know." She set her chop-sticks down and folded her hands, obviously this was very serious if she was setting aside food for it, Shirou mused internally. "There have been several murders in and around town, some guy with a long bladed weapon, and as Shirou's guardian and a teacher I think you two ought to know this."

"..."

"Have they caught the guy?" Shirou asked tensely, gripping his bowl with trembling hands.

"Huh?"

"Have they caught the guy who did it?" He asked, his muscles tensing at the thought of someone harming innocent people, and getting off scotch free on top of it.

"Oh enough of that," Fuji-nee scolded, "there's no use in considering what I think you are." Shirou's guardian leveled a glare at him, one that reminded him eerily why her nickname was Tiger.

"In any case, no, they haven't caught the guy, and that's why I want you two to get home as soon as school is finished, okay?" She asked, Sakura nodded instantly, Shirou's head jerked in agreement.

"Well, now that that's settled, I'm going for seconds!" She declared jovially, all hints of adult concern forgotten in her hunger.

Shirou ate his food quietly, but the great cooking by Sakura was just ingested nutrients, his thoughts continued to fester on the murderer. It was believed to be only one guy, and he used a long-bladed weapon? Nothing more practical like a gun? That in itself was odd, but the fact the police couldn't catch a guy using a melee weapon was beyond Shirou. And the fact no one had taken this guy out yet in self-defense? Either the murderer was exceptionally fit and quick, or he caught all of his victims completely unawares. Odds were favorable to both.

Despite Fuji-nee's warnings, Shirou had actually thought of tracking this guy down. Sure, it wasn't exactly smart, given the fact he was still a growing teenager, and that his skills in deduction and tracking were still only unrefined assets of now. And even if he were to find this guy, what then? Kill him? Clap him in cuffs and send him to the police? Assuming they didn't arrest him for dispatching vigilante justice.

While Shirou knew that even if he tried to hunt down a killer he would most likely be another victim, he had to acknowledge that he wasn't completely hopeless. He was a Magus afterall, if only by the loosest definition, though thankfully no one who would consider attacking him knew that fact.

Breakfast was soon finished with Fuji-nee running out the door to her moped, again she had spent too much time asking for seconds and too little focusing on the time.

In the kitchen, Shirou and Sakura cleaned the dishes quietly and quickly, if Fuji-nee was off in a rush, then they'd be soon to follow. As he was putting away a freshly cleaned pan, Shirou noticed a bandage wrapped around Sakura's right hand, it hadn't been there yesterday...

"Did something happen to your hand, Sakura?" He asked, she jumped a little, startled.

"What? I-I ah..." She paused, trying to come up with an explanation that had nothing to do with her actual injury. "I hurt it last night is all. Fell down the stairs."

A spot of anger welled up in the young Emiya, knowing exactly where this was coming from. "Was it Shinji?" He asked, clenching his fists.

"What? No, of course not Senpai-!" She started, but Shirou wouldn't be fooled, a hot surge of anger flooded his gut.

"Don't cover for him Sakura, Shinji shouldn't be hitting his little sister, and you shouldn't keep quiet about it."

"I..." Sakura started, before putting the last plate away and making her way to the living room. "I think we should get to school, Senpai." She said quietly. Shirou stiffened, having just realized how hard his voice had been. He shook his head ashamed, he was mad at Shinji, he didn't have the right to take it out on Sakura, the victim here.

"You're right, I'm sorry," He said, picking up his bag and his scarf. "Well, let's get going." Shirou said, offering a soft smile to Sakura, she smiled in return and they left the Emiya estate togther.

The walk to school was brisk and a bit hurried, but the sun was out and it was unbelievably beautiful out. Sakura and Shirou were heading out a bit earlier than usual, as the former had an archery club meeting, and the latter had promised his friend, Issei, to help fix some heaters around the school building.

As they made their walk, they stopped at a suburban intersection, there was yellow tape marking a police investigation. While he tried not to focus on it, Shirou's sharp golden eyes saw a broken window, and while the inside of the house was too dark to see, he could detect the faint smell of blood, and it made him wince.

"Senpai?" Sakura asked, looking at him with concerned violet eyes.

"It's nothing, just felt a bit cold." He assured, but he couldn't help but remember what Taiga had told them that morning about a murderer running loose. Was this the same guy? If it was he wasn't far from his home, or even Sakura's.

Shirou kept silently brooding until he and Sakura arrived at the school, at which point the latter went to the Archery club, and the former made his way to the student council room. Within was his old friend Ryuddou Issei, currently over going what looked like a club budget sheet. The Student Body president was tall and wiry, with dark hair that held a teal tint to it, with grey eyes hidden behind a pair of glasses.

"Good morning Issei, what's the damage?" Shirou asked, dropping his bag onto the table. The former looked up and nodded in greeting.

"Good morning Shirou, the heater is in the corner." Issei said, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose, and closing the folder.

Shirou opened his bag and took out his small tool set he had on him at all times, and took a look at the heater.

"Another one going out?"

"Yeah, it wouldn't be a problem if they had maintenance, but sadly those of us in the academic clubs don't get as much as the sports ones do." Issei said neutrally.

"Yeah, up with the sports and to hell with the rest right?" Shirou asked as he took off the side of the heater, looking into the machine.

"Essentially. Anyways, while I appreciate you helping out Emiya, don't think you're obligated to do so. There is such a thing as saying 'no'." The spectacled teen said, a slight frown on his face.

"Issei, you know me well enough to know this argument will be going nowhere." Shirou said, tightening a wire in the heater, the external damage didn't look too bad, but the internal damage could be a different story.

"Anyways, could you leave the room for a second? I need to take a look inside of this."

"Right, a delicate operation. I'll be outside, just give me a shout when you need me." He said, leaving the room.

With his friend gone, Shirou placed his hand on the heater, closing his eyes and focusing inward.

 _"Trace on."_ He whispered, instantly green circuits in his arm lit up, and with them the internal workings of the machine appeared in his mind, allowing him to see the damage done. It appeared the main power cord was the real problem, it was going to die soon, but a patching of electrical tape would preserve it's life for a while longer. Flipping off the energy running through his arm, Shirou opened his eyes, already planning out the task ahead of him.

As he went about his work, he became aware of conversation being held outside the door. Issei was talking to someone, not that it was unusual, he was the Student Body president after all, but he sounded tense...and that could only mean...

"What are you doing here, Tohsaka?" Issei asked in a politely annoyed tone.

"And there it is." Shirou muttered, finishing his repairs on the aging heater. Grasping it by the ends he dragged it out of the room.

"I don't need to explain myself to you, Ryuddou-kun. I simply came here early today." Came the voice of Tohsaka Rin, the most popular and idolized student in the school.

"Issei, a hand with this?" Shirou asked as opened the door.

"Oh! Right. Here I am asking for your help, but failing to aid you. My apologies!" Issei admonished.

"Don't worry about it," Shirou appeased, standing up. "Anyways, we should probably move this, are there more heaters?"

"A few, but we can wait till lunch if you'd prefer."

"Sounds like a plan." Shirou nodded, turning to the arrived third party, Tohsaka Rin, currently looking bored with the conversation, had started to make her way past them. Dressed in a red coat over a school uniform, with twin tails of silky black hair that fell well below her shoulders, there was little doubt as to why Tohsaka stood out, if not only because of her academic skills, but also her intimidating beauty, especially with her piercing blue eyes. Even Issei felt a mild attraction to her, more than he cared to admit anyways.

What Shirou felt however wasn't attraction, if anything he felt something that seemed to make the air harder. As if he was being pressed against jaded stones, it was sudden, right as Tohsaka walked by...then she passed and the feeling was gone again.

"Good morning, Tohsaka." Shirou greeted pleasantly, shrugging off a strange sense of the jaded wall against his body when she walked by, she did seem to have a tendency to drive off most of her suitors without even having to look their direction.

The school idol stole a look over her shoulder, a blue eye meeting his gold. "To you as well, Emiya-kun." She said, then she disappeared as she turned into an adjacent hallway.

"Brr." He muttered, responded to by a smirk by Issei.

"Why don't we get this down with the others?" Issei suggested, Shirou nodded almost numbly and helped the former carry the heater to it's brethren.

The rest of the day passed in a formulaic pattern, from classes, to a lunch with Issei where the Monk's Son again critiqued Shirou's selflessness. The young Emiya wasn't naive, he knew when people tried to manipulate him, so he made a policy to only do extra chores if it benefited more people in the end, and not just the slackers begging him to do it. However, that didn't stop the scolding his friend and his guardian would give him.

The end of the day came quickly, and Shirou waited at the edge of the campus grounds for Sakura, with Taiga's new curfew on both of them, he felt it necessary to walk her home to avoid the former's' wrath, besides he didn't want anything bad to happen to her. He didn't wait long as the violet hair of Sakura appeared.

"Ready to go, Sakura?" He asked, receiving a small smile and nod from the girl.

They didn't talk much as they walked to her house, they didn't always have much to say after a long day at school. Usually, Shirou would be headed to work, but with the extra hours he had put in, his boss had agreed to Taiga's request that he took work off for awhile.

"Senpai?" Sakura asked after a long silence.

"Yeah?"

"Is there any reason why you quit the archery club?" She asked politely. Ah, this question, one posed by not only Mitsazuri Ayako, president of the Archery Club, but anyone else involved with it.

"Oh that. I don't know, I just guess that I'm too busy. With all the things that need fixing around the school, work, I hardly have a few moments to myself." Shirou wished he was exaggerating, but he wasn't. With all the things he was doing for the school and work, he only really made time to make food and do some late night studying.

"Though," Shirou mused,"with this killer on the loose, Ta-Fuji-nee has forbidden me from working, so who knows? Maybe I'll come back." He said honestly, if time was no obstacle he would be able to do a lot more than now, but one couldn't stop time...for long.

Sakura looked a bit happier with his response, as if worrying he would say it was boring or unappealing to him.

"I'd be happy for you to come back Senpai, that way someone could keep an eye on Nii-san." The violet haired girl said almost bitterly, despite being younger by a year, Sakura was the more mature of the Matou siblings, with more poise and grace than anything Shinji could come up with in a lifetime. And the way he treated her, he deserved to get his ass handed to him, but Sakura wasn't that kind of person.

"I'll bet, Shinji isn't exactly known for being a responsible or kind-hearted guy." Shirou said neutrally, receiving a faint 'hmm' from Sakura.

The rest of the walk to Sakura's house was fairly silent, with the streets slowly vacating of citizens, and the sun going down in the distance. Shirou kept his eyes focused on the park in the center of New Fuyuki, it was fairly far, but somewhere there, he had had a family, he had been living another life. Then it had vanished in a fire the consumed all in it's wake...All except him. He shook off the feeling, focusing on getting Sakura home.

Shirou walked Sakura to her doorway, and no further than that. No matter the time or day, the former couldn't bring himself any further to that house. It wasn't a bad looking house, it was actually very well maintained and had a very good view of the city. However, something felt off about it to Shirou, and it wasn't something he was keen to investigate.

"Senpai?" Sakura asked, a faint blush upon her face. "Would you like to come in?... My Grandfather is always eager to meet you." She asked shyly, it was the usual request that Shirou declined. While he had never met her Grandfather, Shirou didn't hold anything against him, but he felt if he stepped into that house he'd be choked by the feeling that surrounded it. He couldn't tell exactly what it was, but he felt a great suffering was within that house, and Shirou had had enough suffering to cope with already. While he loathed the idea of Sakura living in the midst of a house with this...aura about it, she didn't seem the least bit affected by it, so maybe Shirou was just paranoid, but even so, he wasn't going into a house that gave him the creeps because he might be too wound up. If you feel uncomfortable about going down a dark alley, then odds are you shouldn't go down it,

"No thanks," Shirou said with smile that masked his discomfort. "Fuji-nee will have my head if I'm not back at a decent hour. But have a goodnight Sakura, see you tomorrow."

Without another word, Shirou turned and left. He wasn't trying to be rude, but the feeling of that house, of that place, it gave him such a feeling of unease he didn't even consider staying close by even. He couldn't stay in it's rotting presence.

"Okay...Senpai..." Sakura's voice, while soft, carried and Shirou felt guilt stab at him, but he would explain to her tomorrow, say he wasn't feeling good or something. Right now he just had to get away.

As he walked down the long secluded road, his legs took purpose again and his head didn't feel so thick. It was as if he had stepped out of a stuffy old mansion and into the wilderness for fresh air.

As soon as the sickening presence was gone though, another took it's place.

This one was less repulsive, but more overbearing. Shirou felt like his weight had been tripled and gravity had suddenly increased. His bag felt all the more heavy, his scarf so much tighter, ever step felt like he was going uphill.

Shirou shook his head and continued, looking up to see only one other occupant on the road. A young girl in rich purple clothing, befitting an aristocrat of Europe. Appropriate as the girl wearing it was certainly Caucasian, with predominantly European features, but off putting with the hair white as snow, and eyes red as blood.

The girl was unaccompanied, and couldn't be more than twelve at the oldest. Why she was out at this dwindling hour, and without her parents or guardians was ludicrous to Shirou, especially with a killer on the loose. Shirou continued forward, keeping his eyes fixed on the young girl, oddly he saw her with a smirk on her face, and not a child-like smirk, it was the curve of the lips that belonged on a sinister adult.

Before Shirou could open his mouth and ask her what she was doing or where her parents were, she had spoken first as she passed him.

"You'd better hurry, Onii-chan, if you don't summon yours soon, then you'll be dead." Shirou stopped cold.

This girl said the words in a matter-of-fact tone, leaving no room for a childhood sing-song voice. This girl meant every word she said, and it was disturbing.

Shirou turned to question her, only to find her not behind him...and the heavy oppressive force gone as well. Shirou stood straighter, feeling light as a feather, this day was not adding up.

"Senpai!" Screeched a panicked voice, Sakura's. From around the bend came the violet-haired girl, her eyes wide with panic, and sprinting towards Shirou. The latter was very confused, not only by the young girl's words, disappearance and sudden lifting of the oppressive field he had entered, but also Sakura's arrival, looking as if a demon had arisen in her basement.

"...Sakura? What's wrong?" Shirou asked, forcing himself to remain calm. The girl in question looked around, as if trying to find something, but came to realize she'd been asked a question.

"Senpai! I ju-well I-" Sakura stammered before reaching into her pocket and pulling out a handkerchief, one he had given her awhile ago when she cut herself using one of his knives. "I-I meant to give you this!" She said with a bit too much enthusiasm.

"Uh...thanks," Shirou took the worn cloth and tucked it into his school's jacket. "But really, you didn't have to bother Sakura, I have a dozen of these at home."

"I-I know Senpai, but I just wanted to make sure you were alright!" Sakura stated firmly, then jolted back, her cheeks aflame.

"Sakura?" Shirou asked, he was starting to get concerned. "Are you alright?"

Taking a deep breath, Sakura looked Shirou in the eye, her blush fading. "Yes, I just want to make sure you're alright, Senpai. If you need anything, please don't hesitate to tell me." She said, before turning and walking back up the street.

"...okay..." Shirou said lamely as she walked back to her house. What the hell was going on?

Back in the Matou Estate, Sakura watched from the window as the form of Emiya Shirou descended into the city. Making sure nothing attacked from the dark.

"Still no reason to fight for the grail then?" Asked a decrepit and slimy voice, fitting for the reanimated corpse of a serpent.

"No..." Sakura said, not turning from the window.

"You moved oddly fast when you felt the presence of another master," The voice mocked. "I'd almost say you were scared for that young man's safety."

"I have no wish for the Grail." Sakura stated in rebuttal, out of character for her usual reserved nature.

The voice barked a harsh slippery laugh. "Regardless, you have a wish you can see through if you fight this war."

Sakura remained silent.

"You can make sure the life of that boy is safe."

Sakura dug her nails into her palm.

"No one has any reason to pursue him. He has no stake in the war." She retorted.

"Ordinarily you'd be right, but the Grail chooses those with a wish to ask of the Grail, and Emiya has more than enough reasons to make a wish," The voice cackled. "I felt the energy of Magic circuits from him, they felt dormant but were very active. He had enough sense to not enter this house. He must be very sensitive to magic auras and bounded fields." Sakura said nothing.

"Even if he didn't become a Master it would be such a shame for a nice young man like that to die so young, especially in a war that eludes his understanding." The voice continued to whisper at her ear.

"But...Shinji..." Sakura started.

"What of Shinji? Let him think he controls the servant, while you hold the real power. The Servant you've summoned is most compatible with you, she'll follow your orders even if appearing to be Shinji's."

Sakura was silent again, biting her lip.

"This war will claim all who are in it, whether voluntary or conscripted, and the other masters will likely strike first to ensure an easy death." The voice said again, it's presence seeming to back away.

Sakura bit her lip, holding her right hand tightly, red markings on its back. She desperately didn't want to fight in this war, not if it meant killing anyone, not if it meant going against Nee-San and Shirou. However the choice she was given wasn't really one at all, if Sakura wanted anyone to walk out of this war alive, then she would have to make sure they did. That would mean fighting in this war, not to win it, but to ensure the people she cared about did.

"I...I'll do it." Sakura said. She turned to face the gnarled form of a man before her. He raised the sagging skin of his brow at her.

"I'll fight in the Holy Grail War, Grandfather."

The rest of Shirou's walk home wasn't too active as it had been near the Matou estate, and when he got in Fuji-nee had evidently not been there, called away by a family meeting for the evening. So,he made himself dinner (annoyed to find recruitment posters left by Taiga) and found himself in his shed, surrounded by several tools and parts.

Sitting himself down in lotus fashion, Shirou ran a hand over a metal pipe. Closing his eyes, he flipped a switch internally, and energy flowed through his veins, active and alive.

"Trace on." He chanted, focusing his energy into the metal pipe. The energy going into the metal scanned it's structure, affirming it's design. Allowing more energy to flow from his flaring circuits, Shirou began to reinforce the design, making the materials within the pipe stronger. The metal hardened and strengthened way beyond an industrial standard.

After carefully strengthening the material, Shirou then began to change the shape of the pipe, altering it's structure to a visualized image in his mind. He was careful with the energy, allowing it to flow and not forcing it. Precision over speed.

Flipping his circuits off, Shirou looked to the pipe in his hands. Only, it was no longer a pipe. In his hand was a dagger, clearly of Arabic make, a Jambia, a ceremonial dagger worn and used as a weapon in Arabian countries. Made out of an advanced metal.

Shirou stood up, holding the dagger in his hand, the handle, guard, and blade were all made of metal, but shaped to almost a perfect replica. There were a few stray details, but it wasn't a projected make, it was a reinforced bar made to a visualized template. Shirou pulled an image from his memory into mental focus, specifically the design on a Jambia dagger, the grip, the designs on the hilt, even the scabbard, he focused his energy on place these images on the dagger, molding them into it's structure.

 _"When you face an enemy clearly your better, you have the option of either running or fighting,"_ Came the voice of Kititsugu echoing in Shirou's head, it was one of the most crucial memories he kept. _"If you run, bend time to your will to escape. If you fight visualize a weapon to defeat your opponent, visualize yourself holding a weapon capable of winning and make it real."_

Opening his eyes, Shirou looked at the sheathed knife, holding all the heraldry and designs of a typical blade carried in the Middle East. It was the metal of a pipe, reinforced to a point surpassing it's intended strength, and materials projected from the depths of Shirou's mind. Materials made physical through projection, then reinforced to become real. Effectively, Shirou created a work of art from scratch in a fraction of the time that forgery would take.

Stepping outside his shed, Shirou tested the balance of the knife, the weight and grip. While it wasn't as good as a traditionally made copy for sure, it was damn good for using reinforcement and projection, the magic skill set he specialized in.

The evening was still young, so Shirou pulled out an old archery practice dummy, and set it at the far end of the courtyard. Setting himself on the other end, he tensed his legs, the Jambia in his hand, poised for action.

 _"Time Alter,"_ Shirou whispered, his body suddenly heating up, and vibrating. _"Double excell."_

The space and air around Shirou seemed to slow as he made his way forward, faster than he could go, more agile, and with advanced awareness of his surroundings. His heart beat quickly, hammering against his chest, the heat picking up as he ran, halfway across the courtyard.

Lungs and chest burning from the exertion, Shirou reached the target, and raised his dagger.

The head of the wooden target fell to the ground, straight diagonal cut leaving it's mark.

The grip of heat and exertion left Shirou with a sudden breath. Air returning to his lungs and his heart beating very fast. The cool air was more refreshing than water in the desert, cooling down his heated skin, his heart beat slowing down.

Shirou had used the Time Alter skill his father, Kiritsugu, had used in his time. A skill handed down to him not only through training, but through the passing of a magic crest, from one mage to the heir.

Emiya Shirou, bore the crest and legacy of his father, Emiya Kiritsugu.

He was a mage. Perhaps not a conventional one, but he was competent in the unorthodox practices his father taught him. He could defend not only himself, but his ideals should the need arise.

Shirou went back to practicing his Time Alter skills along with his reinforcement and minor projection. However, one thing that bugged him was what the girl he saw had said. Something about summoning his own?

...Summoning.

Shirou entered the shed and found a box labeled "Kiritsugu", inside was a long case, holding something Shirou had only seen after his dad's passing. Beneath that were a variety of notebooks, on combat, tactics, magecraft in general. Shirou grabbed his father's personal journal, and flipped through it, letting prana reinforce his eyes to let him find anything on summoning.

A few minutes of hunting led Shirou to a section called "The Fourth Holy Grail War".

 **Author's Note~ Hello all! I am ArgoGladius and this will be my first attempt at a Fate fanfiction, but hopefully it won't be the last.**

 **Just some background on this fic, it kinda started with the new series Fate/Stay Night - Unlimited Blade Works airing and subsequently ending, but also my frustrations with the current fanfictions here for this fandom. Not that they're bad or anything but in my mind they're...limited. Many I see have Shirou time travelling back in time to do the events over, which okay, interesting, but when everyone else does it you have to wonder if there's another way.**

 **My thoughts on this was "Hey, what if Kiritsugu had some doubts about the Grail being destroyed and tried to train Shirou to the best of his abilities should it occur again?" Doing that, I essentially made Shirou pretty OOC, but hopefully no one minds too much, he's still the idealistic and lovable idiot, he's just a bit quicker on his feet and with the uptake. That being said, Shirou, as you've read is a lot more proficient with Magecraft or Magic use if you will, while not to a scale like Tohsaka, Shirou is using his actual magic circuit and not his nerves, and has some strength with reinforcement, as well as some projection. But also bears some of Kiritsugu's magic crest, so in terms of combative prowess, Shirou is pretty ahead of the game.**

 **As for how this run through the typical route will be different from lightnovels, Animes and other fanfictions, Shirou again is a bit more level headed and understanding of the situation, there will be more POV's from the other characters of the series, namely Saber, Rin, Sakura, Rider, Lancer, if only to add some flair into it and more personalities to the servants and what not. Shirou will still be the central character, but I'll switch it up when I feel it is necessary and hopefully it keeps you all engaged. As for which route this follows, it's going to be a fusion of Fate and Unlimited Blade Works routes, with a predominant presence from Heaven's Feel, more of which will be revealed as time comes.**

 **Just to be clear, I do not have a beta nor am I searching for one, I kinda like doing things on my own, as well as editing and brainstorming on my own, but if you have suggestions feel free to message me about them, I can't promise I'll take them on, as I already have a game plan in mind, but I'll certainly consider it.**

 **Finally, if you're wondering what the main ship for this is, or whom Shirou will be romancing this time around, if the character tags were not clear, it will be a ShirouxSaber fic, though I will be paying homage to both Sakura and Rin's feelings for Shirou without it becoming a Harem fic.**

 **Till next time!**

 **~ArgoGladius**


	2. Hounds and Fate

Grumbling as sleep left her, Tohsaka Rin peeked from under her blankets.

"Morning...disgusting." She mumbled, wanting nothing more than to sleep another hour, or five.

It had been a particularly late night scouting out the town, every landmark, every likely spot a Master and Servant could dwell. If the Tohsaka heir knew something, it was to cover her bases thoroughly.

Pulling from the deepest excesses of her willpower, Rin pulled herself from the warm and comfortable bed into a standing position in her bedroom. Instantly she was regretting it, if she had not had her self-taught discipline, she would have fallen back down into her bed.

With great reluctance, Rin trudged out of her room, her feet landing on the wooden floor with thumps as her body seemed to refuse to lift itself from her drousy hunch. She cursed the fact that her house was so large, drowsily trying to find her way to the bathroom. Eventually she found it, and half-an-hour later, Rin emerged with her hair all done, face clear of any signs of sleep deprivation, and a clear confidence in her steps as she strode to her kitchen.

Arriving at the kitchen she blinked at the sight before her. On the ornate table made of mahagony wood was a five-course meal laid out with artistic presentation, everything from meat to rice, tea to coffee, it was truly a sight to behold.

"Archer!" Rin barked, instantly the air dissappated beside her, and there stood the tall imposing form of her Servant, a tall man with white hair, steel-gray eyes and tanned skin endorned in black armor and a red cloak.

"Yes, Master?" He asked, crossing his arms in nonchalance, which only irked the Tohsaka heir even more.

"Explain to me what this is?" She demanded, pointing to the table loaded with food. Archer raised an eyebrow.

"That would be a table, Master." He answered sardonically, Rin was resisting the urge to slap that permanent smirk from his face.

"And why...exacty...DID YOU PUT DOWN ENOUGH FOOD TO FEED AN ARMY? AS FAR AS I KNOW SERVANTS DON'T EAT!?" The angry magus demanded like a young child who lost their icecream to an older sibling. To Archer's credit he didn't even bat an eyelash.

"You are correct that servants don't need to eat food to sustain their mana levels, however, our masters do. So I would ask you to eat something so that we can be at full energy levels if and when we face an enemy servant." The grey-haired servant explained calmly and logically, ironic given the fact that's what Rin's school persona would do.

A few seconds passed as Rin looked between Archer and the food laid out, undecided, until a growl from her stomach ended the battle. Begrudgingly the Mage sat down at the table and aggressively picked at her breakfast with chopsticks.

A few minutes passed, and Rin had downed a course.

"Why did you make so much food?" She whined, seeing all laid out before her, beckoning to be eaten, but if she did that she wouldn't leave the table without losing her figure.

"I figured our late night reconnaissance would have left you doubly tired, and since we are staying past sunset at your school today, I thought I might make extra for your lunch." Archer replied with a shrug. Rin paused, chopsticks in mid-air about to clutch a bit of cooked egg.

"That's...thoughtful of you." She said, clutching the cooked egg like it was a conquest.

His smirk returned. "I merely look for the best odds of success and follow the correct path."

Shirou's walk to school lacked the vigor it had had on previous days, even lacking since yesterday. The sun was out again, warming the winter chill if only slightly, even the wind wasn't blowing today, a rarity for Fuyuki. No, Shirou couldn't stop his brooding, since the events of last night with the strange girl, and the weird feelings he had been getting all day, he simply knew they were connected and after looking through his father's journal he had found a possible cause.

The Holy Grail War. A series of wars fought by seven mages for the holy cup of legend, said to be able to grant any wish, but only one. It was said each magus summoned a Heroic Spirit, a figure of history or legend to fight for them in contest for the grail. And these figures of myth and legend were more than the average human, faster, more powerful, and unable to be killed by regular weapons of human make. These heroes were summoned as servants to the Magi who acted as their respective masters, dictating tactics and how to go about the war.

The entry itself had been extremely vague, dated to twenty years before, long before Kiritsugu had found Shirou, and long before the fire. From what he read, the last Grail War would have occurred in the mid-nineties, tens years ago. Kiritsugu had also said that every Grail War occurred sixty-years apart, where the grail by war's end would manifest itself to the winner. This meant that if the notes were right, the next grail war would occur in fifty years, so even if this war was real, it was a long ways off.

So why did Shirou's guts tell him that thought process was wrong? He had reread his father's first entry pertaining to the Grail War several times, and still there was no definite answer to what happened in the last war, nor what could happen in these wars. All of it seemed to have been study of the generalities of the war, and not necessarily the details of what happened. Shirou had spent most of his night trying to sleep unsuccessfully, the thought that something like this could occur again was ludicrous, and yet his thoughts didn't calm. He had gone to his dojo, and reinforced all of the weapons he had advanced hidden under the floor in the corner, then he reinforced the estate's physical structure to endure immense damage. Finally, he had strengthened the bounded field as much as he could without making it obviously apparent to any Mage within a hundred miles.

Shirou had passed out from sheer exhaustion, and woke up no less worried than the night before.

Sakura had been concerned but said nothing, quietly shooting him concerned glances from across the table. Even Fuji-nee, as observant and subtle as a rock had noticed and said something about "other fish in the sea" regarding women. Really, there was a reason he didn't actively seek her out for helpful advice.

So, now walking to school, Shirou couldn't place the feeling in his gut that something was terribly wrong...and that if something were to happen, people were going to end up getting caught in the crossfire.

"Senpai?" Sakura asked, looking up at him with concerned violet eyes.

"Yeah?"

"Are you alright? You look tense." She said, and she wasn't wrong, every nerve and muscle in his body was as taught as a tensed spring.

"Yeah, just a little tired is all." Shirou said with a forced smile, trying to at least seem alright for Sakura's sake.

Sakura said nothing, but Shirou knew he hadn't convinced her. For now though, he had to contend with school, and worry later.

The morning passed without much activity, actually, Shirou blocked out most of it, too focused on internalized thoughts, as well as his father's journal. While he knew he had to go to school, Shirou decided he'd have to bring his father's journal, hopefully to alleviate some of the tension in his body, maybe he'd find something that stated his bad feelings were nothing to be concerned with.

However, a part of him feared that he'd find something that justified his concerns, and then what? That was a question he didn't know.

As he brooded, Shirou dimly realized it was lunch, and automatically was moving. He almost ran straight into Issei who was trying to address him.

"Shirou...Shirou!" He said, grabbing his friend by the shoulders and shaking him.

"What!?" Shirou asked harshly, Issei flinched back in surprise. Reprimanding himself, the red-head took a deep breath. "Sorry Issei, did you need something?"

"Well, Sakura had said you were acting odd this morning, and you do look a bit out of sorts today." The spectacled teen said. "Are you alright? Do you need to go to the nurse?" He asked worriedly.

"No, I'm alright," Shirou said, trying to sound sincere, Issei's frown proved he wasn't convinced. "I just had a rough night, and I just need some fresh air."

Issei sighed, adjusting his glasses. "Well, you do push yourself pretty hard Emiya, so it doesn't surprise me that you're burnt out. Just take it easy alright?"

"No promises." Shirou said with a smirk. Issei sighed mock-dramatically.

Shirou made his way to the roof, no one would be up there given the temperatures outside, and it would give him some time to collect his thoughts in private. Besides, with the tenseness in his body, he couldn't imagine being cooped up in a building all day. He needed to breathe.

As he rounded the stairs to the rooftop, Shirou slowly felt himself feel at ease without being surrounded people. While he was usually trusting, right now he was paranoid that someone or something was going to jump out and attack him for one reason or another. Without people around him, he felt a bit less suffocated, that he could think without worrying about someone out to get him.

Opening the door to the roof, Shirou was welcomed by a blast of frigid air, instantly chilling him, but also calming him even further than his heart had been at previously. Finding a secluded part of the roof that mostly protected him from the wind, he sat down and opened to the page he left off on. He read on, delving deeper in on this Holy Grail War.

He read a long section focused on catalysts, usually personal objects of the preferred hero, but also ancient materials that belonged before or during the time of the hero. In any case, either were usually powerful enough to summon the preferred servant to one's side. Whether or not the summoner could actually control the servant however was another question entirely.

It appeared that servants, even though under a pact with their master, some, such as in the Archer class, were as likely to kill you as they were to fight for you. Some were summoned by a master with similar idealogies as their own, therefore they were driven by a singular goal as opposed to two in opposition. Servants in the Berserker class were some of the fiercest and unstoppable fighters in the class system, however those abilities came at the cost of their sanity, usually rendered mad and set mostly to ravage other servants and masters.

Another interesting facet of information was the longevity of a servant. If their master died, a Servant could exist for a while, or until they found a master who lost their servant and form a pact with them. It was interesting, and a little unsettling, if these Heroic Spirits were without someone to order them around for even an hour, imagine how many people could be caught in their sights.

Shirou read on, glancing over a bit on summoning incantations pertaining to classes and variations offering special enhancements, instead flipping to the start of the First Holy Grail War.

As far as the notes went, three distinct Magi Families came together where Fuyuki would one day be, and constructed the Grail System. Kiritsugu's notes were vague, but they followed a diagram on the Grail itself, composing of a 'lesser' and 'greater grail' both made of separate components and some sort of ritual involved. He could have been wrong, but Shirou swore he saw dried tear-marks on the page around that part.

The next page had the names of the three Magi families responsible for the construction of Grail. The Einzbern, the Makiri, and...the Tohsaka.

Shirou stopped cold.

Tohsaka? Like Tohsaka Rin? The school idol!? Could...could she be a Mage? The journal indicated as such, the Tohsaka family was an influential one after all, and they had more than enough means and mysteries to be Magi. But, could Rin Tohsaka know about the Holy Grail? Pretty likely, if what little he understood of how Magi Families operated served him well. Could she guess him to be a Mage, even if only in pretense?

Shirou didn't know, all the calm he'd manage to collect fell apart, and he knew he had to leave. He had to get away. Standing up shakily, Shirou strode to the door to the roof, yanking it open harshly and practically charging down the steps.

He almost missed the feeling of a thousand gems press against his body.

Then he ran into someone.

The notebook fell from his hands and Shirou tumbled down the stairs, landing in a clutter at the bottom of the steps, bruises no doubt starting to form. Shaking his head, Shirou instantly turned to apologize.

"I'm sorry about that, I-" but he stopped. There, at the top of the stairs was Tohsaka, and in her hands, his father's notebook.

Shirou's heart froze.

If she even looked into that notebook, then any connection she had to the Magi would be confirmed, and then...Shirou didn't know what might happen next, and he didn't want to.

The school idol looked at the notebook, _opened_ it and scanned a few pages. Then closed it, and descended the steps. Shirou was crouched, frozen, unable to even think about moving. She had just _read_ his father's journal...no doubt she understood the situation, and was about to deal with it.

However, instead of a declaration of something sinister or attack Rin held the book back to Shirou.

 _What_?

"You should be more careful next time Emiya, not only will you hurt yourself but you'll lose your notes." She said neutrally, before heading up the stairs again, as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened.

Shirou was dumbstruck, holding the notebook in his hands as if it were a holy text. Tohsaka had read the notebook, and hadn't seen anything? Could she really just be a normal person?

Upon opening on the page Tohsaka had been on, Shirou noticed a strange sensation. The words on the pages seemed to morph and distort, he caught the tail-end of a chemistry formula, that turned into a drawn diagram of the grail...What the?

It seemed Kiritsugu hadn't left this journal only for his eyes alone. He had left it for _him_. Whether coincidence or not, he was the only one who seemed to be able to read it. However, that still brought into question on whether or not Tohsaka Rin was a magus or not, and that question was yet to be answered.

Shirou sat there at the bottom of the stairs, catching his breath, the feeling of panic leaving him surely and slowly. He let himself breathe a sigh of relief, he was at school, and no one could pull anything here, so he could finish the day then read more into the Grail War during the weekend. That way he'd have a quiet enviroment and be able to delve into more of his father's research.

Shirou went about the day, slightly better than he did in the morning, keeping more focus and feeling more like his usual self. The rest of the school day went by quickly, and before he knew it, Shirou was packing up his stuff to leave quickly.

As he was exchanging shoes and setting everything in his bag, someone rudely bumped him in the back.

"Can I ask a favor of ya' Emiya?" Came the slippery and repulsive tone of Matou Shinji, Sakura's elder brother and a former friend of Shirou's. Running a pale hand through his blue wavy hair, Shinji smirked cockily, behind him were three girls at a short distance away. Ever the womanizer Shinji was as well.

"What do you want, Shinji?" Shirou asked, trying to sound patient and interested, while really he just wanted to leave.

"Whoa whoa Emiya, relax," His former friend said complacently. "All I wanted to ask was if you would mind cleaning out the Archery Dojo, after all, you like being the helpful type don't you?"

"But Senpai, Fujimura-sensei told you to do it." One of the girls behind him whispered.

"But if I did that then we wouldn't make it to the restaurant before it closes, besides Emiya wouldn't mind would you?" Shinji asked, assuming he knew the answer.

"Actually, I can't. I have plans." Shirou stated simply, the cool relaxed attitude of Shinji erupted into a child throwing a temper tantrum.

"What?!" He practically screamed, evidently not used to not having his way.

"I have plans tonight Shinji, sorry to disappoint you. Besides, you're co-captain of the Archery Club, so you have to do your fair share, and not make Mitsuzuri do it all." Shirou said, calmly passing by Shinji and heading for the door. A hand grabbed his shoulder to turn him around, Shirou was tensing his muscles in case a fight were to break out.

"C'mon Emiya, do this for an old friend's sake?" He asked, pleading with his eyes. Shirou shook Shinji's hands from his shoulders.

"You seem to forget that we aren't friends anymore Shinji, not after I found out you beat your little sister." Shinji flinched, not only from the accusation but from the venom held in the usually calm eyes of Shirou Emiya.

"If you think you can think for even a second you can call me friend after that, then you really don't know what you did wrong."

"Look-" the blue-haired teen started, but was interrupted by Shirou turning around.

"Goodbye Shinji." He cut the other off, leaving and beginning the walk back to his house.

Had it been anyone else asking, Shirou might have been willing to help, but in the case of Shinji, that door had been closed for a long time, and would probably remain so until Shinji changed, which wasn't a very likely scenario. Even when they first met, Shinji had been distasteful at best, and while there had been at least some friendship, it ended a year ago when Shirou met Sakura and found the bruises. No friend of Shirou's would harm anyone, let alone their own sister.

Perhaps it was high of standards, but they were pretty simple really, don't hurt anyone.

The sun was already setting by the time Shirou got home, dropping his bag on the counter and getting a drink of water. His plans for the night were to settle in and go through his father's notes again, hopefully to wrap his head around this whole Grail War thing, then maybe continue working on his Magecraft. It was also great considering the fact that it was the weekend, so Taiga and Sakura would be at their own houses. To be fair Taiga would drop in on occasion as the guardian of Shirou, but other than that he had the estate to himself.

Deciding to continue reading the Journal, Shirou went to his bag to retrieve it. Except it wasn't there.

It wasn't in the bag at all, and seeing how he hadn't taken it out before hand, Shirou realized he left it at school.

Yeah, he had been about to put it in his bag, but instead Shinji had come, and Shirou left in anger, whole fully forgetting his journal there. Well, that was a problem.

Making up his mind as the sun dipped below the horizon, Shirou set off for the school again, wanting to get it before it got late, and didn't want to wait until after the weekend.

Not even ridding himself of his school jacket, Shirou jogged out the door making his way for the school. Thankfully, the training he'd done with his Magecraft had increased his endurance considerably, especially with the Time Alter spell.

In about forty minutes, Shirou made it to the school, lightly panting and slightly sweaty, but he had made it. The gateway to the school was locked, but Shirou decided to make a way around that. Focusing on reinforcing his muscles and bones in his legs, he tensed, and leapt up, clearing the gate and landing on the ground.

Reinforcement on the body was different and more dangerous than reinforcing say a crowbar. Shirou had to be careful to only strengthen his body and not morph it into a material well above human skin and muscle, otherwise he wouldn't be going anywhere. Plus he had to make sure he undid it afterwards, not making any permanent reinforcement. Luckily, he'd taken the precautions and he was no worse for where.

As he made his way to the doorway to the school, Shirou realized that the courtyard and property were eerily quiet and steady, as if holding it's breath for something to happen. It was creepy, but he shook it off, all he was here for was the notebook, and then he would be off, nothing would happen.

Only moments later, Shirou would be eating his words.

Picking the lock to the student entryway, Shirou entered and found his father's journal behind the bench, untouched. Picking it up, Shirou made for the door...then he felt it.

He felt two overpowering presences press in on him, he couldn't describe the feeling as both were distinctly different, but it was an awesome and indescribable power. He felt the ground shake, not from an earthquake, these felt more localized, and sharper than an earthquake. When he ran outside he couldn't comprehend what he saw.

In the courtyard stood two figures, one with silver hair in red and black armor and robes, wielding two short broadswords, one white and one black. The other figure almost blended in with the dark blue of the night, hair and garb, in his hands was a red spear, oddly familiar to Shirou, and it looked poised to strike.

The two began to duel, fighting in quick bursts of speed that made their shapes blurred flashes of color. Shirou could scarcely make out the agility of the blue figure, striking with his spear faster than his eyes could track. Likewise, the figure in red was just as quick, his blades flashes of white and black as they met the red spear. Back and forth they fought for several minutes, bantering back and forth, while Shirou couldn't hear them, he could pick up the faint echoes of voices from the two.

Suddenly Shirou realized he was too close, if he could see them, then they could most definitely see him if they looked. He made to move, but stumbled, his legs nearly frozen to immobility. That unfortunately made him cry out lightly as he corrected his stance.

"Who's there?" Came the voice of the figure in blue. Shirou didn't respond, he ran.

Sprinting back to where he came, Shirou made his way through the school, reinforcing his eyes to see through the dark hallways. He was scared, oh most definitely scared, but he kept his head and ran to an open classroom. He closed the door behind him, and placed his hand against it.

 _"Trace on."_ He said, his magic circuits illuminated from behind his eyes. Focusing inward he reinforced the door and the wall around it, giving it a solidarity it had previously lacked.

Turning away from the door, Shirou looked out the window, he was on the second story, so if he could reinforce his body to break the window and take the impact of the ground below, he might be able to get out of here alive. As he was making his final calculations, a dark shape crossed his vision, with the sound of glass breaking, and a painful pressure on his chest, Shirou felt himself flying backward, breaking through the door he had reinforced. He knew something in his body must have broke, but when he looked up he instantly stopped worrying. There, in the doorway, was the figure in blue, his red spear hoisted on his shoulder. From what Shirou could tell, this guy wasn't from Japan, no he had a complexion that belonged to a student visiting from Europe, how in the?

"So, a Mage huh?" He asked, red eyes glinting hungrily, his wicked grin almost resembled a dog's sneer. "Well, sorry to meet like this, but I can't have you living after seeing me. It ain't personal." He said almost apologetically, but Shirou could already tell he was up to no good. His shoulder tensed, he was going to kill Shirou.

 _"Time Alter._ " Shirou chanted internally, as the figure's arm tensed. _"Double excell!"_

Shirou moved, the Reality Marble augmenting the flow of time around him. The spear missed him as he twisted from the floor to his feet, sprinting down the hallway. Despite his speed, he had only narrowly avoided the red spear, this guy was fast.

Before Shirou could turn the corner, he heard speech warped by the reality marble he formed around himself, but he paid it no mind, focusing on getting the hell out of there.

Shirou almost rounded the corner, elation was coursing through his heart and chest, he could make it! And then a piercing pain passed through his chest, his heart, and wrenched him up.

Excruciating pain formed around Shirou's body, his heart feeling like it was cut in half, and his body feeling like a thousand pounds of weight were pulling on his limbs. Looking down; Shirou could see the bloody head of an equally read blade stuck through his chest, holding him off the ground. It looked familiar...had he been caught by the spear?

His body was wrenched to the ground, and everything seemed to whirl around him, unsure as to what was happening. Despite seeing his heart being pierced, and knowing he should be dead, Shirou still lived, but only in a strange twilight devoid of all feeling.

"Sorry about this kid," came the voice of the man with the spear, he sounded as if he was standing above his body. "Can't say I enjoy this, but you know how it goes 'Dead men tell no tales' and all that."

"Gotta hand it to you though, you almost gave me the slip there, even made me use my _Gae Bolg_ to skewer you. If my master wasn't a coward and this were a private event I would've liked to have seen what you were made of," He continued on, Shirou couldn't turn his head, but it sounded like he was giving a eulogy of sorts. It reminded him dimly of ancient warriors honoring their fallen opponents. He sighed. "Sorry to leave you this way kid, but some people in this world have no sympathy for someone caught in the wrong place and the wrong time. If your spirit wants to curse me, just ask for the Hound of Culann." And then, he was gone, as was the feeling of a stalking predator.

Feeling then left Shirou's body, leaving him cold and numb. Despite the fleeting feeling that he should be dead, something held him from the gates of death, a life line, something that wouldn't let him go.

Dimly, after a indeterminable amount of time, another presence came within Shirou's proximity. It was familiar, but also different, the feeling of hard jewels pressing around his form was there, but it was softer, less jarring. Maybe it was the numbness he felt, or maybe it was just a softer feeling, he didn't know.

"...At the very least I can stay with you while you die." A voice said, it was also familiar to him, but it was distorted, he couldn't make out who it was from.

His body was turned over and a sharp gasp came from the person, Shirou tried opening his eyes, but his bleary vision only could focus on the blurs of red and tan.

"No," the girl said in a horrified tone. "Why you? Why now of all days do you have to be here? How am I going to look her in the eye anymore?" She picked up something, Shirou only caught the brief glance of his father's notebook.

His vision clouded again, when it cleared, he saw a red gem held on a chain suspended above him. It was the necklace that Tohsaka always wore.

 _"Tohsaka?"_

A red light filled Shirou's vision, and the feeling of cut gems became more potent, seeping into his skin. At first the energy was forceful and almost painful, then as it passed the skin, it became warm and tingling.

Shirou couldn't help but recall the day of the fire, when the warmth of his Father took hold of him and saved him from death, and let him sleep peacefully. And like then, Shirou's body relaxed and succumbed to sleep.

 _"Are you finished yet, Master?"_ Archer asked across their bond, Rin stood up and turned down the hall, dropping the necklace her father had given her. It was of no use now.

"Yes, were you able to track Lancer?" She asked.

 _"No, he has an uncanny ability to cover his tracks. Something tells me he's better at hunting than being hunted."_

Rin inwardly cursed, they had been distracted for a minute, someone was killed, and now this Lancer wasn't able to be found. The Tohsaka heir didn't know what she expected of this war, but playing cat and mouse wasn't on her agenda, not when people were going to pay the price for it...Besides, no one attacked Rin Tohsaka and lived to tell about it!

Shaking her head, Rin let her feet carry her out of the school ground. "Alright, keep your eyes peeled for any other servants, I'm sure we had more than a few spectators."

 _"Very well, where shall we rendezvous?"_ He asked.

"At the house, something tells me Lancer isn't up for more fighting tonight."

Consciousness began to return to Shirou, and feeling to his limbs. The fog of warmth that previously covered and seeped into his body was gone, and now all that was left was a dull ache in his chest.

Opening his eyes, Shirou saw the broken door of the classroom, shredded as splinters on the floor. So, the strange event that had occured wasn't just a weird dream. Shirou had been attacked, and his heart...

Looking down at his shirt, he saw the cut in the cloth and the blood that was congealing on it. His blood. He reached into his torn school jacket and felt the skin over his heart, it felt raw but it was definitely there. Freshly mended skin new to the world.

By all accounts this shouldn't have been possible, but Shirou knew better than most that many things were possible.

Struggling to his feet, Shirou picked up his father's notebook, it hadn't been damaged in the chaos. With heavy limbs and an exhaustion he had never felt, Shirou began the long walk home, letting his mind enter a detached state as his legs carried him along the familiar path.

Rin sat at the Kitchen table, twiddling her thumbs as she awaited Archer.

"You should really hold onto your things with more care." Came his deep and cutting voice. In his hand was her necklace, no worse for wear.

"You went back and got it for me?" She asked, sounding neutral and impassive.

"Stones like that shouldn't be left behind, nor should they be used unless in the case of absolute emergencies." Archer said, in a tone that was heavy with dissaproval. Rin scowled.

"Oh? Are you telling me how to use my gems now?" She asked, taking the necklace from his grasp and throwing it in the table drawer. "It doesn't matter, I have plenty of jewels to use, what's the worry of using one?"

"Using it on a stranger without any benefit or tactical advantage," His cold reply came. "For all we know, this could come back and undo us."

"Well, too late now," Rin growled, glaring daggers at Archer, who had crossed his arms casually. "Besides, I saved someone and that someone had, as you said, 'Probably saved my life' while fighting Lancer, so I think you would be on even terms with him now." She said, smiling smugly when Archer flinched at her point.

"You don't understand," Archer said, uncrossing his arms and staring at his master with eyes the color of refined steel. "Lancer went to kill him because he was a witness, he was killed, all was said and done."

"If you're going to come to a point you should probably come to it soon." Rin snapped, where did he get off telling her what she should or shouldn't do?

"What I'm saying is that now that you've saved the boy's life, Lancer will be made aware shortly, and finish what he started." And like that, Rin's heart locked in place. Lancer would go to finish off Shirou, and this time he would do more than eviscerate him.

"...Shit!"

After walking for what felt like hours, Shirou finally managed to make it home, his body protesting every step of the way. It was natural he supposed, he had been stabbed through the heart.

Stepping through the doorway, leaving his shoes on, he made it to the kitchen before collapsing. As his body heaved a sigh of relief from the rest, Shirou's mind began to play catch-up.

At his school he had found two more-than-human beings. One of which had tried, and succeeded, in killing him, at least he had almost suceeded in killing him. Someone had been there to save him, someone had saved his life when he had been on the cusp of death.

Again, like Kiritsugu a decade before, and since then Shirou had been saved, but hadn't saved anyone else.

Shirou pulled every detail he could of the man who came after him, a red spear, and he somehow stabbed him with it with a good few meters to spare. Wait...he had said something hadn't he?

 _Gae Bolg_...the name rung a bell, and on instinct, Shirou opened his father's journal, right onto the page about Noble Phantasms.

"A Noble Phantasm is/are the weapon(s) of a servant, a trump card in any given situation, usually they are armed with a special ability that gives them an advantage. An advantage they use to slay their opponent."

Shirou scanned the rest of the passage, until finding the section he was seeking.

"...despite it's advantages, the activation of Noble Phantasm usually results in the identity of the weapon and it's wielder to be compromised. The reason for this is the activation is caused by calling the name of the weapon/ability, and that will instantly give away any opponent..."

Shirou closed the book, his breath shallow now. He hadn't thought about it at the time, but now he knew...that the Holy Grail War was real, and had started again. The man wasn't a guy with advanced combative abilities, he was Hero of myth and legend who had been given physical form to fight in the Grail War.

And his weapon, the Gae Bolg...Shirou had read the name before. Something in Irish Mythology...

 _"...Just ask for the Hound of Culann."_

Then it hit him. Cù Chulainne, Ireland's Hero of Light in the Ulster Cycle, he was one of Ireland's most famous legendary figures.

And his spear...was called the Gae Bolg. In the myth it had the ability to hit the target's heart, non stop. Did that apply to real life? Or was it an exaggeration?

Regardless, he had been nearly killed by one of Ireland's most famous heroic legends, in any other event Shirou would have laughed at the absurdity of it all, but the dull ache in his chest reminded him just how very real his mortality had been. This was something Shirou couldn't laugh off, he had been stabbed by the spear of long-dead hero, and odds were he wasn't the first nor the last one.

All the incidents with the murders flooded into his mind next.

 _"...the killer used a long bladed weapon..."_ The cursed spear.

There was no denying it, by no stretch of the imagination could Shirou pass off the very eerie fact that the Grail War was real. And now, he was caught in the middle of it.

Shirou sat indecisive, unsure of what to do. The revelation of the Grail War had shaken him, but to be completely honest with himself, he didn't know what he could or should do. He wasn't a participant or Master, so really he should have been ignored right? Evidently not, seeing how he had been skewered not two hours before.

Really, what could Shirou do? He was a Magus yes, but not up to anyone's standard being unconventional in approach and manner. While he was good with projection, reinforcement and Time Alteration, those he could only imagine using in a combat scenario, and while he could set up bounded fields, and basic things a magus could do, Shirou was by no means an expert in anything. If someone wanted him dead, even a lesser magus could easily take him out. By all accounts, Shirou didn't have many options, maybe he could try and get one of Kiritsugu's old contacts and leave the country, but what about Sakura? Taiga? Issei? Or even Tohsaka? What if they were hurt or worse, killed?

Kiritsugu had mentioned the Fourth Grail War in his journal, and by the date it was likely to occur, it had at least been around the time of the Fuyuki Fire ten years ago. Probably taking place sometime before then.

As it was, Shirou didn't have a whole lot of options, and they seemed to be more stacked against him than ever.

That's when it came. A presence at the bounded field.

Shirou had been able to read whoever approached the bounded field, so people like Sakura and Taiga were able to get in without a problem. Burglars in the night would either be dissuaded sub-consciously to leave, or unable to move forward, making them think the building was haunted.

This presence at the field was more potent than any person, and Shirou recognized it, the feeling of a stalking and powerful predator entered his mind.

...The Hound of Culann had followed him home.

Then the field was struck, and broke like glass. Shirou winced and instantly was on his feet, despite his aching limbs, running for the dojo, where his reinforced weapons were hidden in the corner. If he could get to them he might have a chance to at least escape.

As he entered the Dojo and made for the other side, the ceiling creaked. The creak and the sudden flaring of a canine presence were the only warnings Shirou got before the roof was ripped open and a blood-red spear pierced through, aiming for him.

Shirou lunged back, adrenaline kicking into his system, just enough to allow him a quick dodge.

There, in the middle of the Dojo, under the tarnished roof, was him, Cù Chulainne, the Hound of Ulster. His spear, the Gae Bolg was rested on his shoulder. And he could only be a Lancer-class Servant.

Now that Shirou had a proper look at him, he noted that this guy was nothing less than fit and fearsome. Wearing light armor on his torso over a shirt of wool, Lancer held a lazy smirk on his face, his red eyes focused solely on Shirou. His predatory eyes were only enhanced by his wild midnight blue hair held in a pony tail, falling past his shoulders.

"You sure are a handful kid," Lancer said, slouching in place. "First you turn out to be a Mage, then you survive my attack. I was trying to be nice earlier and give you a quick death." He said as if Shirou was an ill-mannered host to his guest.

"And while I guess I should be angry, I was a little dissapointed that I didn't get to see what you were made of before," he dropped his spear into a ready position. "So whaddya say kid? Die where you stand? Or fight for your life? I'll even give you a few seconds to prepare yourself."

Shirou had three options: run and hope to escape, try and get by Lancer to get to his reinforced weapons, or take his offer and face him. None were ideal, but the latter of the three was the only option Shirou saw any chance of surviving.

Looking around him, Shirou found the rack of shinai practice swords and quickly picked up one.

" _Trace on_."

Instantly, Shirou's circuits flooded with life, flowing into the practice sword in his hands. Quickly, but efficiently, he reinforced the materials, flooding them with prana and advancing their construction to suit his needs.

In mere seconds, a metal Shinai was in his hands, resembling a thick and more rounded Katana, it was better than nothing. Shirou made sure to curve the impromptu blade, and hone an edge to it. It wasn't the ideal weapon, but it's all he could do right now.

"Ready kid?" Lancer asked, his spear poised to strike, it shivered as if thirsty to taste Shirou's blood again.

Before his magic circuits could turn off on him, Shirou called on them again.

 _"Time alter."_ Heat surrounded Shirou and pressure on his heart increased. " _Double excell."_

Shirou moved forward, raising his blade up, and swung down. Lancer's eyes widened for a second, but his spear was already there to block his strike, and the warrior's foot drove into Shirou's gut, sending him flying back through the screen doors of the dojo into the hall. His circuits flipped off, taking with it the heat and pressure on his heart.

"He has teeth! Good!" Lancer called, Shirou didn't wait to see his next move, he got up and bolted.

He didn't make it two meters before he felt the presence of the Hound upon him again. He turned, blocking a strike from the red spear, then an instant later he blocked another strike. And another, and the strikes were only getting faster.

Lancer was toying with him, he had to get out of there now.

Shirou lunged back and down another hall, breaking through the hallway glass and jumping into the courtyard.

"If you're going to run at least have some dignity about it!" Lancer called, Shirou ignored him, focusing his sights on the shed.

The shed.

That's where he might have a way to drive Lancer off.

He made for it, ignoring his pounding heart and screaming limbs, it was either keep moving or die.

Shirou was halfway across the yard before Lancer's presence came up behind him.

" _Time Alter."_ Lancer reared his leg back to get a kick at him.

" _Double excell."_ Shire dodged the strike, and swiped at Lancer with his sword.

Lancer evaded the blow, barely missing the edge coming near his face. A stunned and surprised look on his face. Shirou kept running, the Reality Marble weighing heavily on his heart as he reached his shed and closed the door. Placing his hand on the door, Shirou went about reinforcing the worn wood of the shed as quickly as he could, his circuits were starting to flair in pain, soon they'd be shot and he'd be helpless.

He didn't have time, he had to get to his father's belongings. Before Shirou could even make a step forward, the door to the shed broke open. He turned, swinging his reinforced Shinai, only for Lancer to shatter it with a blow from his spear.

Shirou fell to the floor in pure exertion and exhaustion, staring up at Lancer in fear.

Niether noticed the evangelic white circle that glowed on the floor on the other side of the shed.

"Check mate kid," Lancer said with finality, his spear less than a foot from his face. "You are full of surprises. Heh, maybe you were meant to be the seventh." The spearman tilted his head to the side in thought before chuckling.

"If you had summoned me instead, we could have been good friends, maybe I could have taught you a few things. You would have been a better master than my current coward of one, but that's academic." He raised his spear, Shirou's left hand suddenly burned intensly, but he ignored it, probably cut in the confusion of the battle. Now, he had to think of a way to get out of this, even at double excell Shirou couldn't keep up with Lancer, he had to find a way.

"Any last words kid? I didn't offer you the chance last time." Lancer offered. Shirou swallowed back an insult.

 _"No, I'm not going to die here. Not today."_ Shirou thought, willing the think of anything, anything at all he could do. But he couldn't get to his father's belongings without getting skewered, and this time, he wasn't coming back. But he wasn't about to die now, especially not at the hands of this guy.

"None? Alright, I'll make this quick kid." Lancer said in a soft and compassionate tone.

Shirou tensed, ready to push to triple excell. It was his only option, though odds were he'd most likely die of heart failure, then he'd be stabbed through the heart again.

And for the second time, Shirou reflected on the thought of dying without having saved anyone, something he swore he'd do on the day of his rebirth.

Lancer raised his spear, and Shirou prepared to risk all.

The spear, thrusted forward, Shirou began to let his circuits flood with Prana.

However, an overwhelming force erupted in the shed, overshadowing Lancer's presence tenfold.

"What the-?" Lancer started, before a misted length flung toward him. He blocked it with the shaft of his spear and was thrown out of the shed into the courtyard.

Shirou followed the length that seems to be shrouded with swirling air, and to his shock, there before him was a young woman. She was Caucasian, with green eyes and golden hair, framing a pale and regal face. She was petite and adorned in armor, in her hands was the length that seemed to be made of swirling air. Her gaze flickered to him, and Shirou's heart stopped in his chest, this woman was beautiful.

"I am your Servant, Saber," she said, her voice was dignified and regal, holding an air of command and almost a divine quality. "In response to your summons I have come." Her gaze narrowed in on Shirou's, it wasn't agressive, more of an inquisitive nature.

"I ask of you: are you my master?"

His hand still burning, Shirou broke his gaze to look at it. Instead of finding a cut up hand, he found three symbols on the back of his hand, colored a blood-red, and they seemed...almost alive, burning as he gazed upon them. What were they?

A section of Kiritsugu's journal entered Shirou's mind.

 _"A Master is marked by three command seals usually found on the back of their hand, these seals (or spells) mark three unbreakable orders a Master has over their Servant. They are the physical manifestation of the contract between a Master and Servant..."_

The puzzle pieces fell into place as he looked up at the woman before him.

"I ask again: are you my master?"

"Yes." Shirou answered, standing to his feet.

"I am."

Saber looked down to his hand as well, then back up to his eyes. She turned suddenly, eyes focused on the courtyard, no doubt where Lancer had recovered.

"Very well, as your servant I shall be your blade, and I shall vanquish your enemies and those who threaten you. The contract between us has now been struck." She said, already in motion, stopped by Shirou's hand on her arm.

"Wait." he said, her eyes looking back at him in question, frankly Shirou had only a half-baked idea of warning her of the Gae Bolg, something in his father's journal said the name of the weapon was the key to a servant's identity and vice versa.

"What is it, Master?" She asked, keeping her gaze focused on the doorway.

"This guy, he's Lancer class," Shirou tried to rapidly explain before said Lancer decided to attack again. "He uses a spear called the Gae Bolg." He supplied, her eyes widened in understanding.

"Stay out of his spear's reach." Shirou said firmly, ignoring the burning coming from his left hand. It subsided and the woman nodded.

"I see, thank you Master." She said, gently pulling her arm from his grasp and charging out the door.

Shirou looked down at his hand, realizing he had just been touching the arm of heroic spirit of the past. Frankly, this night was only escalating into insanity, and he didn't know which was more concerning, the fact all this was happening, or that Shirou was able to cope with it in stride.

The sound of clashing blades made Shirou rush to the doorway, there Lancer and the woman were engaged in combat. The former trying to pierce the latter's defense, but despite his superior reach and agility, the woman wasn't giving ground. Every strike was deflected, no matter how fast and ferocious. The woman was obviously the superior combatant in this engagement, taking more ground than giving. They moved so fast that Shirou could barely follow their movements, it was like watching a boxing match on fast-foward, warping and accelarating movements beyond the ability of normal human eyes to track.

The two broke off briefly, looking at each other with studious gazes.

"Heh, not bad kid," Lancer called to Shirou, "you've summomed a top-notch servant. And Saber class no less, though she hides behind her sword like coward."

"Frightened Lancer?" The woman called, taunting. "You'll shame your class if you turn tail and run. If you won't come to fight me, then I shall come to you."

"Look, answer me one question: you're Noble Phantasm, it's a sword right?" He asked, hefting his spear to his shoulder in a non-threatening posture.

"Perhaps," She replied, her tone guarded. "For all you know I may have something completely different, such as a bladed axe, a polearm, or even a bow."

"Heh, get real _Saber_ , though I faced an Archer who favored swords, I doubt you've got something as obscure," He retorted. "Look, whaddya say we call it a night? I've had enough fun."

The woman looked back at Shirou, focusing on the blood on the front of Shirou's uniform coat, evidence of Lancer's past attempt on his life. She tightened the grip on her sword.

"After you've tried to take my master's life? I'm sorry Cù Chulainne, but I expected more honorable intentions of a Hero of your reputation," she declared, the Hound of Culann gaped in disbelief, before shooting a glance at Shirou. "Therefore, I must decline your offer and finish this battle now."

Lancer grimaced, agitated, but he shrugged and gripped his spear in a ready stance.

"Sorry Saber, but if you know my identity and want to see this to its end, I have no choice but to oblige you." His spear began to glow, energy being gathered into his Noble Phantasm.

Time seemed to slow, and Shirou knew it wasn't from his time alteration skill, Lancer was going to use his Noble Phantasm, and the woman wouldn't be able to dodge it. She had saved his life, and unless he did something she'd be killed.

Dimly, Shirou realized he had already activated his magic circuits and the chant had already sounded in his head.

 _"Time alter,"_ His body tensed, knowing he was going to be pushing himself far beyond what he could take even well rested, now he didn't have a choice. _"Triple excell."_ The heat and pressure on his heart were forgotten as Shirou opened the brief case he had grabbed offhandedly, pulling out the object and loading a round into it's chamber.

" _GAE_!" Lancer shouted, lunging upwards.

The round found it's place and Shirou flipped the barrel and chamber up, snapping it into place. He lowered the gun and took aim.

" _BOL_ -!" Lancer continued aiming his spear down, Shirou fired.

The round ripped right through Lancer's right shoulder, making him falter in surprise and pain. Instantly, he lunged back, glaring at Shirou in surprise, the woman too stared at him in shock. Shirou flipped off his circuits and fell against the doorframe, his heart wasn't going to last if he kept this up.

Lancer's wound closed, looked like Shirou's shot hadn't been decisive. He looked up with enraged red eyes, flickering back and forth between the two.

"Alright, I get the message," Lancer called, slacking his posture and hefting his spear up onto his shoulder. "I wasn't supposed to do much outside of the tonight other than study, but I guess curiosity got the better of me."

"What? You're leaving?" The woman demanded, eyes aflame.

"I'm not going to mess with a Saber-class servant and her Master who seems to be pulling tricks out of his sleeves every other second, kudos though kid," Lancer said, turning to Shirou. "You keep this up, and I might be able to form a new contract with you before the end of this." He turned and started to walk away, but stopped and leveled a glare towards the woman.

"You're welcome to follow me home, but know that if you do I won't be playing nice," he glared at both Shirou and her. "And I'll kill you both."

With that final threat, Lancer vanished into a blue energy, no longer here with them. Shirou let go of a breath he didn't know he had been holding and set the gun on the ground. His father's Contender, still in good condition, and still with a good amount of ammo left. The last of his father's gifts to him.

Looking up, Shirou walked heavily into the devastated courtyard, keeping his focus on the woman.

"Are you alright?" He asked, concerned. In turn, the woman leveled him a fierce glare.

"What was it you were thinking?" She asked, while she was in control her tone was pure cutting ice.

"I-what?"

"You put yourself at risk by attacking an enemy servant, why?" She asked stonily, her emerald gaze not leaving his.

"I didn't want to see you get hurt, that's all." Shirou said, it evidently wasn't the right thing to say as she leveled him with an even fiercer glare. This time, Shirou didn't back down, he held his ground and met her gaze. After a tense few moments, she closed her eyes and breathed in deeply, then exhaled.

"Why would you compromise your own safety for the sake of a servant? I am here specifically to keep you from getting killed." She said in a cross, yet obviously restrained tone.

All of the frustration and agitation Shirou had felt for the past two days wanted to erupt from within, however he couldn't let it all out, he had to keep a cool head.

"Look, I didn't ask to be part of this Grail War, and I didn't ask to be a Master either, so excuse me if I'm trying to save your life!" He exclaimed, she looked like she was going to get angry, however her eyes flickered to the shed where the broken remnants of Shirou's reinforced Shinai lay, and the Contender in it's case.

"I see...so I take you are not a typical mage?" She asked.

"I-uh..." Shirou stuttered, having been ready for a verbal spar. "Uh no, at least not in the sense that most Magi operate in."

She said nothing, looking to be in her own thoughts, her eyes scanning the courtyard and estate tactically.

"Sorry, I'm being rude," Shirou said, exhaling then looking her in the eye. "My name is Emiya Shirou-"

"Emiya?" She asked, eyes narrowing in question, while it was slightly off-putting, Shirou ignored it.

"Yeah, what do I call you?" She considered a moment, studying him intensly, as if assessing if he was friend or foe.

"You summoned me did you not?" She asked, Shirou knitted his eyebrows in confusion.

"Not intentionally no, one second I'm going to be killed by Lancer, the next you're there saving me." He shrugged helplessly, the woman considered this a moment before accepting it.

"I see," she said, turning to face him in the eye, "then as I am your Saber-class servant, you should refer to me as such, Master."

Shirou winced at the title placed upon him.

"Only if you call me Shirou and not 'Master'." He said. She considered this as well.

"Very well, _Shirou_ ," she paused as if registering the name. "Yes, I quite like the sound of that, Shirou. We are in agreement." She said, and for whatever reason he felt a slight tingling up his spine when she said his name.

"And I'll just call you Saber," he said. She nodded, and he in return, "Alright, what do you say we- Saber?" She had tensed suddenly and faced southwards.

"A Master and Servant have just entered the premises," She informed, Shirou felt his heart drop, was he going to get any peace tonight? "I should be more than able to face them myself, wait here Shirou." She said, and then without further explanation she leapt on to the roof of the estate and lunged further.

"Damn it." Shirou cursed as he ran to intercept her.

Out of the estate and on the street, Saber was facing a vaguely familiar figure in red and black...the Servant that had been fighting Lancer! And from the looks of it, Saber was going to destroy him. All he was doing was blocking her strikes, no aggressive action at all!

She was going to kill an opponent who wasn't fighting back.

"Saber, wait!" He called, she didn't listen to him, she wasn't going to unless...Shirou looked down at his Command Seals, the mark of a Master, if he used one...no! He couldn't, those things were the only insurance he could control his servant.

Looking up, the other Servant was clearly loosing ground, he'd be dead soon.

"Saber!" He yelled over the clashing of blades. "Stop and withdraw or else I'll use a Command Seal!" Instantly, Saber paused her attack, then leapt back to stand beside Shirou.

"What are you doing Master?" She hissed, ignoring the formal title, Shirou looked back.

"He wasn't fighting back, he didn't come here to fight." He said, Saber looked ready to argue, but a voice interrupted her.

"How observant of you, Emiya-kun!" Shirou was frozen still by the voice, in disbelief as he turned.

And lo and behold stood the one person that Shirou desperately didn't want to go up against in any regard.

"Tohsaka..." Shirou whispered in awe.

"Good evening to you as well, Emiya." Rin said, a smirk on her face.

 _Shit._

 **Author's Note- So for this chapter I wanted to get the ball rolling, and even so this is about 15K words, whoops. I don't really keep track of the amount of words per chapter, when it's done, it's done.**

 **I've made some creative changes to Lancer for my purposes, like in Canon he really doesn't like Kotomine or following his orders, but I decided to give him a slightly more sensitive and remorseful feeling concerning killing civilians, and he'll have an interesting camraderie with Shirou in this particular fan fic, as well as potential flirting with Rin, we'll see. I'm not sure if I mentioned it in great detail, but Lancer has a slightly different design for this story, while his canon design is classic at this point, I'm a wee bit of a history buff so for some heroes I may be detailing their attire in different forms, I know it's fantasy as well, but c'mon, Rider in the tube top and thigh-highs? Uhg.**

 **So anyways, Lancer is more like Proto-Lancer in Fate Prototype, in terms of asthetics at least, with armor and more wild hair, and I'll be throwing a few nudges to the Fate Prototype OVA here and there. So keep an eye out for that.**

 **And yes, Shirou used the Contender, I'm not going to say he uses it much in this series, and I am not gonna get into the complications of it now. It did use origin rounds, but as Kerry isn't around anymore, and Shirou isn't Kerry, it probably won't have that affect, especially not against a Servant. But I did establish that he has the Emiya magic crest, so it might work on other mages, I can't be sure, but hopefully I won't have to dig into it.**

 **As for updates, I have up until Chapter 7 written, and will post the chapters one every week, unless they're short, and once the going goes, we'll see how I do in updating.**

 **Till next time,**

 **~ArgoGladius**


	3. The Fake Priest

Shirou couldn't recall when he had ever felt more uncomfortable in his life, but right now sitting in his dining room with Tohsaka Rin sitting calmly opposite of him, and his servant, Saber, to his right against the wall, he really couldn't find comfort here.

Rin was drinking tea calmly and regally, appearing completely at ease with the situation, really was their anything that would phase her? Saber was kneeling, eyes closed, and her armor off, she would occasionally open her eyes, look towards Rin, then Shirou, frown, then close her eyes again.

As for Shirou himself, he was getting restless, the idea of Rin being a Magus wasn't exactly far-fetched (her family was partially responsible for the Grail Wars after all) if there was one person suited to be a Mage, it was her. The reason he was anxious was the fact that she was calmly drinking tea in his dining room like nothing was out of the ordinary. Rin and Shirou were barely acquaintances before, so even this was a huge leap in their relationship for him. Was this night going to get any weirder? Because so far it hadn't stopped.

"If you're going to have tea bags, at least get the triangular ones. They tend to have a lot more flavor to them." She said at last, at least the tense silence was shattered.

"I'll be sure to do that, assuming people stop trying to kill me tonight."

She scoffed, "What? Lancer is the only one who's tried to kill you, and you look no worse for wear."

"Easy for you to say, Tohsaka. I personally didn't ask to get wrapped up in a war, and frankly I don't think it's really funny." Shirou said with narrowed eyes, instantly Rin sobered up.

"I suppose you're right." she said, placing her tea cup on the table and looked straight at Shirou.

"Let's cut to the chase then, what do you know Emiya?" She asked.

"Not a whole lot," he replied earnestly. "There are seven Magi who are Masters of seven heroic spirits who act as Servants," He continued, glancing at Saber.

"And their ultimate goal is to claim the Holy Grail."

Rin nodded in confirmation.

"That's the basic premise, yes, what else do you know?"

Shirou thought for a few moments, not a whole lot came to mind except for what had been read so far in his father's journal.

"Not much, some sections on the function of the Grail and the nature of Servants, their summoning, and Noble Phantasms." He said.

"Sections?" Rin questioned.

Shirou bit back a curse, well no use holding back now.

"Yes, my father had a journal on the Fourth Holy Grail War and kept it on the various aspects of the war and how it worked."

"Well, that explains your calmness of the situation," She said, taking a sip of tea, "personally I didn't even consider you to be a Mage at all. You're too assuming and clueless."

Shirou felt the strike of her blunt insult, he was going to retort, but he had the feeling that he'd only make the situation worse.

Rin spared a glance at Saber, still sitting in a calm and dignified posed, completely at odds with the figure she was faced with not half-an-hour before. If Saber felt the scrutiny, she didn't respond to it.

"Though you managed to summon Saber, so perhaps I underestimated you," she said, turning back to Shirou. "How did you summon her?"

"Actually...I didn't really mean to..." He replied, resisting the urge to scratch the back of his neck. "It just sorta happened."

Rin's eyes narrowed.

"What do you mean "just sorta happened"?" She asked with a cold edge to her voice.

"Well," Shirou looked back at Saber who met his gaze, and nodded, as if expressing permission. "All I know is that one moment I'm about to be killed by Lancer..." again. "And then Saber is there saving my life. As far as I know, I didn't intentionally summon her."

Rin stared with blank eyes at Shirou for several moments without any gesture or expression. She raised the tea cup to her lips, drained it calmly and slowly, then in an act of almost obscene anger she slammed the cup down on the table.

"So you're telling me that you summoned Saber without meaning to!?" She exclaimed. She took his wordless response as an answer. "How did you, a Mage without any prior knowledge of summoning and without meaning to, summon Saber!?"

Rin, in an act quite unlike her usual composed and calm nature Shirou knew her by, grabbed her head and wailed, resting it on the table with a "thud".

"...Tohsaka?" Shirou asked with bewildered concern, cautiously raising a hand to shake her shoulder as if trying to calm a spooked animal.

Suddenly, the dark-haired mage looked up, studying Saber critically again.

"I take it you haven't completely materialized then?" She asked Saber, who in turn met her gaze.

"Yes, the summoning ritual was incomplete. While Shirou may be a Magus with capable stores of Mana, the connection between us is weak, however I am far from helpless." She said in obvious threat towards Tohsaka, who let her head hang.

"If I had summoned you, both those problems would be solved," she growled, head in hand. "Well, I guess we should speak to Kirei about this."

"Kirei?" Shirou asked, watching as Rin stood to her feet.

"A pain in the ass who unfortunately has some information, get your coat." She said, grabbing hers and stepping outside of the kitchen and into the main entrance.

Shirou didn't move for a while, but when he did, he looked back towards Saber, who in turn stared at him.

"Well?" He asked, Saber shot him a questioning look. "Should we follow?"

"That is your choice and yours alone, Master." She responded.

"Yeah, but if we're going to be fighting a war together I should consult with you on matters too right? We are partners after all."

Saber said nothing, seeming to roll the thought around for a few moments before accepting it.

"Very well, then I would think it best to go with Rin, she seems trustworthy to an extent and does not appear to harbor any aggression towards you," she said with graceful poise. "Besides, the more you can learn the better we can function as a Master and Servant." Shirou nodded standing up from the table.

"Alright, wait with Rin outside, I'll be a few minutes." He said, departing into his room.

A glance at his bed only reminded Shirou of how tired he was, wanting nothing more than to curl up and enjoy a whole day of sleep. However, he walked past the futon to his closet, pulling out a fresh shirt and a jacket. Shedding his torn and bloodied shirt and school jacket from his torso, Shirou grimaced at the wound on his chest, undoubtedly from Lancer's spear, and most likely having a twin on his back.

Something slipped from the torn jacket's pocket and landed on the floor. A red gem lay on the ground, glinting in the bedroom light, Shirou recognized it from somewhere, but he couldn't place it. Shrugging the thought aside, he placed it into a drawer in his desk and pulled on his black and white jacket. Before heading to the main entrance, Shirou dropped by the dojo and pulled up the false-floor in the far corner, there lay an assortment of weapons Shirou had reinforced into shape and made incredibly strong. He had made a split decision that he'd take one just to be on the safe side. Picking up a Katanna-shaped weapon, Shirou placed it in a long bag used to carry shinai to the Kendo club where Fuji-nee often helped with, she'd be fine with one less. He shrugged it over his shoulder.

As he stepped out, Shirou realized Saber would probably need a coat as well, if not for warmth then concealment. Checking the entrance coat hangers, Shirou only saw a large yellow raincoat and one of his father's old down coats. For the sake of practicality, he opted for his father's worn coat, it'd probably be a bit too big on her, but it was better than sticking out like a sore thumb. Folding the coat over his arm, Shirou turned off the lights and stepped outside. Rin was waiting there with Saber, both looking anxious to get moving. Wordlessly, Shirou handed the coat to Saber, and turned to Rin, meeting her steady gaze.

"Let's go."

* * *

In the shadows of the night, a Servant observed the two Masters and a fellow Servant walking through the deserted streets. While she wasn't watching per say, the Servant was able to make out the shapes and magical energy from the trio, the boy appeared to be the Master of the female Servant, but from what she could sense, the connection was weak, fragile. Whereas the other Master had an incredibly potent and strong connection with her Servant, she couldn't see him, but odds were he was elsewhere keeping his eyes opened.

Focusing on the boy Master, the Servant could read a significant amount of Prana emanating from him, but it was hidden, or subdued. From her first observation, she could barely get anything out of him, but focusing solely on him, she found a potentially powerful Mage that seemed camouflaged in the presence of the other Magus and the Servant.

 _"Rider."_

"Yes Master?" Rider asked upon hearing the voice of her own Master.

 _"What do you see?"_

"Two Masters and a Servant, a fragile bond between the present Servant and Magus, but a significant amount of Mana emanating from both," Rider reported, "the male Master is particularly interesting."

 _"How so?"_

"At first he seemed like an inept, no reading from him at all, however upon closer examination, it appears he possesses a significant number of active Magic Circuits, however he has some sort of strange shroud that obscures his true strength." A twinge of anxiety struck Rider across her bond with her Master.

"Master?"

 _"Let me see through your eyes."_ Her Master ordered.

Confused, but not willing to disobey her orders, Rider closed her eyes and removed her mask, when she opened her eyes again, they were not her own.

For a brief moment, Rider could see normally, without using the usual power her eyes wrought. In the darkened street, Rider could make out the boy Master's form, average height, lithe build, with distinctive fiery-red hair. Next to him was his Servant, a woman with golden hair, striking features and an air of authority and strength surrounding her. Finally the other Master, dressed in a red coat over a school uniform, with silky black hair held in twin tails, she led the three, knowing the path with certainty.

The presence of her Master left her, and Rider replaced the mask over her eyes, reverting back to her sense of her surroundings.

 _"Withdraw Rider."_ Her Master said in a quivering voice.

"Master?"

 _"All I want you to do tonight is to keep an eye on both Masters, do not engage and do not be seen."_

"That's contradictory to achieving the grail Master." Rider replied coolly.

 _"Rider, do as I say or I'll use a command seal."_

"...As you command, Master."

* * *

Leaving Saber at the gate of the Church, Shirou looked up as the ominous presence the building had.

"Tell me more about this Kirei guy."

"KotomineKirei, overseer of the Grail Wars and a representative of the Church, he makes sure that the war doesn't get too out of hand and that the populace remains ignorant to the events." Rin said automatically, walking up to the door.

"I'm guessing you know him?"

"Yes, he was my father's student, and is my guardian, as well as a second teacher." she stopped at the door.

"Wait, he's a Magus too?" Shirou asked, how many people were going to reveal themselves as one before the end of the night?

"Yep, and a damn good one," she said as if admitting something she'd rather not. "Don't get me wrong though, he's a real pain in my ass."

"Noted." Shirou replied, not really sure what he was expecting.

The church itself was extremely dark, the only light that illuminated it came from moon shining in through the windows, and the solitary flickering candle at the end of the hall. There, in the aura of the candle was a tall man with shoulder-length dark hair, with an imposing set of broad shoulders. He turned upon hearing the door closing and fixed a stare on both of them.

"You've refused my previous summons and now you finally arrive with a stranger, Rin," he said, his voice deep and smooth, but holding a mocking air as he spoke to Tohsaka, "I can only assume he's the seventh?"

"Yeah, and he's also a bit behind on the Grail War, so I decided you'd probably be the one to fill him in." She said, ignoring the subtle mocking of her.

"Wise of you." he complimented, turning his sights towards Shirou, now in the moonlight, he could see Kotomine's face, overall he was a fairly handsome man with strong features. However, he lacked expression, his face was stony and immovable, even his eyes appeared dead and stagnant.

"And what would your name be?" Kirei asked him.

"Emiya Shirou."

"Emiya?"

The Fake Priest chuckled deeply, and Shirou felt unnerved, whoever this guy was, he wasn't exactly making a good first impression on the younger Mage.

"So I take it you are an unorthodox Magus?" He asked, folding his hands behind his back.

"Unusual mentality, and while able to do the basic stuff for apprentices, far from excelling in any area." Rin answered for him.

"I see, what skills do you have?" He asked, this time, Shirou responded.

"Reinforcement." Shirou made sure to make it appear that was all he knew, for some reason, he didn't trust this guy to the full-knowledge of his abilities.

A dark eyebrow raised.

"Oh? In what fashion?"

Wordlessly, Shirou produced the sword from his bag, holding aloft a full-sized blade in his hand, a green circuit of energy running down the length of it.

Kirei looked impressed, admiring the shape of the weapon.

"May I?" He asked, holding his hand out for it. Shirou handed him the blade, albeit reluctantly.

Making a few swings Kirei tested the blade and it's balance, clearly impressed.

"Interesting, most don't even consider using strengthening magic to produce weaponry, nor even in an offensive matter." He handed the blade back to Shirou then walked back to his altar and returned with what looked like a metal ring, looking like it would fit in Shirou's belt loops on his jeans.

"However, the drawback of your approach is that you lack concealment. Here," he handed the ring to Shirou who stared at it helplessly. "That metal is produced to conceal a weapon, while I won't get into the details, if your life is in danger, merely grasp your weapon and pull it from it, as long as it's with you, you have a way to access your weapon without being conspicuous."

"Wait," Rin stepped forward, frown on her face and a dangerous edge in her voice, "aren't you supposed to be impartial in all this?"

"I'm simply aiding a Mage that yourself have said, Rin, is in need of aid, as it is, I am only permitted to help to a small degree, which I consider this to be so," He cocked a mocking smirk. "Why so angry Rin? Disheartened that you never had the courage to ask for my aid?"

Shirou experimentally put the blade into concave object, watching in fascination as the blade disappeared, he tried drawing it to see it no worse for wear, he sheathed it again and focused his attention on the other two. As of right now, he wanted answers, not to endure a sparring match between this guy and Tohsaka.

"Can we get back to the Holy Grail War?"

"Ah yes, my most sincere apologies," the Fake Priest said, bowing humbly. "What do you wish to know?"

"The Holy Grail," Shirou said in immediate response, "what is it? Is it _the_ Holy Grail?"

"The Holy Grail, in terms of the wars is an omnipotent wish-granting device that has the power to grant the wielder of it's choosing a single wish," he said, walking to the moon-illuminated windows. "While it may not have contained the blood of Christ, nor served as his drinking cup, the vessel does present itself in the form of a grail. And considering it's divine powers, it is a Holy Grail, though the authenticity of it somewhat irrelevant."

"Only one wish?" Shirou asked, making sure he held on to everyone of Kotomine's words. "So there's no way to share the power or anything?"

"An apt question, to which the answer is unfortunately no."

"Why not?"

"The Grail, while having the power to bring Heroic Spirits from the past to our time, cannot have a wish made upon it until it materializes, and of course it will only materialize when a sufficient amount of Servants and Masters are killed." He said, almost disinterestedly.

"Wait what?" Shirou stuttered, hearing the comment so bluntly he was sure he misheard, he knew it was a war, but to go that far? "The Grail only appears when most of the Servants and Masters are killed?"

"Indeed, so if one were to attain the Grail, he or she would only be able to do so after the other Masters and Servants were killed."

Rin stepped forward.

"Hold on Kirei, the rules only state that the Servants have to be eliminated, Masters are just the physical anchors that weigh them down. Once their Servant is gone, they aren't considered a threat." She said, shooting Shirou only a side glance as she faced the Fake Priest.

"True, however consider this: if a Master loses a Servant, and a Servant loses a Master, the two widows can form a new contract and keep fighting. As it is, killing the Master as well as the Servant is the safest option." Kotomine rebuked, though he aimed his statement towards Shirou.

"Do you think you can beat your Servant, Emiya Shirou?" He asked Shirou with a fixed stare.

"Of course not." Shirou said without hesitation. It was true, despite any skill he had, when fighting a Servant like Lancer, a Servant Saber handled easily, his skills were focused on the defense, he couldn't make any wayward offense, save for using his Father's Contender. And even then, Lancer only left because Saber was there and was at full strength.

"Indeed, and if faced with not only a Servant and a Master, what then would be the most logical answer to the problem?" He asked, and Shirou knew the answer.

"To kill the enemy Master."

"Yes, then the Servant can press the advantage, defeat the enemy Servant, and seal victory." The Fake Priest recited, not for the first time Shirou was wondering where his sanity skipped off to, because all this wasn't making sense!

"Is there anything else you wish to inquire?"

"Yeah," Shirou looked down at the Command Seals on his left hand, the burning had died down and they looked like idle tattoos on hand. "Why was I chosen to be a Master? I'm not really a typical Magus, so how could I be chosen for a War between Magi?"

Kotomine chuckled.

"That would be one of the more debated questions in the Grail War. The truth is, nobody knows, all that is known is that the Grail chooses the Masters based upon if they have a wish to be fulfilled. They are chosen only by the grail, and unfortunately, the factors for choosing are unknown. The best we can make sense of, is that the Grail chooses those who need it most."

Shirou couldn't help but get uncomfortable, the way Kotomine was describing it, the Grail was like a sentient being. It made a strange sort of sense, but was way out of his comfort zone along with everything else going on. The idea that this...cup could grant any wish asked of it, as well as selecting the ones to make a wish for it as being 'worthy', well Shirou was really hoping he'd wake up any second now.

"Okay, I guess that makes sense...but why would I be chosen? I don't have anything to wish for." Shirou said, Kirei stopped walking and fixed him with a stare.

"Do you not?" The fake Priest deadpanned. Shirou almost flinched in the dead, bored tone of Kotomine's voice.

"What do you mean?" Shirou asked, anxiety in his voice. How could this Priest know anything about him?

"The last Holy Grail War ended ten Years ago," Kotomine said, walking along the benches again until he stood in the main aisle. "In flames."

Instantly the feeling of an intense heat and suffocating smoke filled Shirou's senses. Everything flashed in an instant; the burning city, the crying people begging to be saved, people dying to save others. And there he was, the sole survivor.

Shirou felt his knees buckle, barely catching himself on the bench before hitting the ground. His forehead had bullets of sweat running down to his brow, his muscles and limbs were shaking, but he kept his gaze focused on the Priest, refusing to fall before him.

"Emiya-?" Rin called out in concern, Shirou raised his hand to wave her off.

"So, what you're telling me is that the last Grail War ended in the Fuyuki Fire?" Shirou asked, trying to keep his voice from shaking.

"Indeed, unusual as the Grail will materialize every sixty years, making this current war the shortest cycle yet." Kotomine mused.

Shirou didn't say anything for awhile, the thought that this Grail War had taken the lives of so many...that had made Shirou the person he was today.

"How?" He asked, trying to keep himself upright.

Kotomine looked back at Shirou, as if considering whether or not it'd be worth telling him at all, but it looked like he would acquiesce.

"In the final days of the Fourth War, two Masters and their Servants fought against each other for the Holy Grail. I do not known what specifically happened, but I do know it was close," The Priest had turned his back to both Shirou and Rin, facing the altar. "At the end of the battle between the two Masters, the winner was offered the Grail, but rejected it."

"Rejected it?" Rin asked in astonishment.

"Yes, and he commanded his Servant to destroy it after his rejection of it. However, before the Servant could fully destroy the Grail, the defeated Master touched it, and made a wish upon it. Evidently, his wish created the great Fuyuki Fire, and in it's wake, thousands were killed."

Shirou stared silently, a Master had had the Grail, it was in their grasp, but then rejected it? Why? If he had made his wish then maybe no one would have been killed! The other Master's wish killed so many, if he had killed the other Master, or simply made his wish on the Grail, then none of the things that happened in Shirou's life would have happened the way they did...but was that a good thing?

"The question you must ask yourself, Emiya Shirou, is not whether or not you want the Grail, but whether or not you are willing to let someone else take it." Kotomine said, turning back from his altar.

"What do you mean?"

"Consider the Fire, it was caused by a Master's wish. Who's to say the one to hold the Grail won't be a man or woman of similar intentions?" Shirou could have been wrong in the darkness of the Church, but he swore he saw Kotomine glance at Rin when he said that.

"I'm guessing you guys don't have any say on who can be the winning Master?" Shirou asked, hoping to be wrong.

"Indeed we don't, with the Grail as the decider, we ultimately have no say in the psychological health of the Masters. If one were a murderer, we could do nothing if he was the sole champion of the War, and had a wish that involved the deaths of many."

"So, I guess revoking my rights as a Master wouldn't be a good idea." Shirou stated. Kotomine chuckled.

"No, it would not. Even though I'd be willing to grant you sanctuary here, after the War, assuming you were still alive, you'd be hunted by the Mage's Association. Seen not only as a fool, but as a coward." Kotomine's words cut into Shirou's skin, he was intentionally trying to get a rise out of him.

"They would hunt you, and kill you. But not before dissecting you, taking your Magic Crest, and studying you to understand more about why the Grail chose you. Despite the choosing not being purely physical." The Priest continued to drawl, really he had made his point.

"Okay, I get it," Shirou interjected before the Priest could go on, "if I tried to revoke my rights as a Master, I'd not only be making it easier for an absolute Bastard to make a wish, but I'd be hunted by the Magi afterwards."

Kotomine smirked, "So long as you know."

The Priest then stepped forward, his face shrouded by a pillar blocking the moonlight, the air behind him illuminated.

"Now, Emiya Shirou, the time has come for you to decide, will you fight in the Holy Grail War?"

Shirou clenched his fists, almost feeling the confining Command Seals on his left. In this case, he didn't have much of a choice. He couldn't forfeit, or else he wouldn't be able to live a life without constantly checking his surroundings and being overly-cautious. And if he tried to leave behind the Grail War, the possibility of people to get hurt or killed went up, and while Shirou didn't credit himself too much in his skills as a Mage, he knew that he couldn't just sit idly by while people were getting killed. He couldn't. Then there was Saber, the Heroic Spirit he had accidentally summoned, he may not really know her that well, nor what Heroic Spirit she was, but she seemed genuinely noble, like he couldn't sense anything that would make him doubt her. Though to be fair, he had met her only a few hours ago. In the end though, the choice was clear.

* * *

Walking out of Church, Kotomine gave a final farewell to Shirou.

"Remember this, Emiya Shirou, a True Hero of Justice has no purpose unless there is an evil for him to vanquish," Kotomine said, before opening his arms in a grand gesture. "Now go, and may your wish be granted."

Shirou looked away, hearing the doors to the Church close. He and Rin walked beyond the threshold of the Church grounds, there Saber waited at the entrance as she had when they went in.

Noticing him, Saber turned to address Shirou.

"Shirou, have you concluded your business here?"

He stopped in the street, letting the cool air settle on him and let him breathe. The church had been dark and despite being empty, stifling, like something was trying to suffocate him in there, now though he could breathe, he could think properly.

"Shirou?" Saber asked again, pulling him from his thoughts, turning towards her, Shirou stared into his Servant's focused green eyes.

"I've thought it over," he said, noticing Saber straighten, awaiting his answer. Clenching his fists and preparing himself for what he was to undertake. "I'll be your Master, Saber."

Instantly, Saber's stoic expression softened to a degree, and a smile greeted him.

"I may not be the most typical Mage, and I'm not exactly an expert on this war, but so long as you're willing to help keep the casualties to a minimum, and don't do anything to compromise other people's safety, then I'll be your Master." This was Shirou's test, Rin had mentioned offhandedly that a Servant would sometimes feast on the soul of a person to increase their strength. Because he didn't know her identity, Shirou couldn't exactly be sure Saber would do such a thing, but the hope for power to achieve the Holy Grail was tempting to any hero.

To Shirou's relief, Saber instantly nodded in agreement.

He held out his hand. She stared at it uncertainly.

"What? Aren't we supposed to shake hands on this or something?" Saber gave a soft smile again and took his and, her eyes warm as she looked at him. Her armored hand took his in a firm grip.

"Allow me to renew my vows: So long as you continue to fight for the Grail without the cost of innocents, and so long as your ideals work in parallel with mine, I, Saber, shall be your blade and fight to make sure your dreams and mine are achieved. The contract between us has now been struck." She said, letting go of his hand, despite the cold armored glove, Shirou felt his hand burning from where it had met hers.

"Okay...good." Shirou said lamely...now what?

"I think it would be smart for you to go home, Emiya." Rin said, breaking Shirou from his stupor. He nodded and followed a few paces behind her, Saber staying close to his side. None of them looked back as the ominous Church disappeared from sight.

A short walk later, Rin suddenly stopped in the middle of the road, at the dividing line between the more traditional houses and the modern ones in the city.

"Tohsaka?" Shirou asked, concerned. The girl in question looked back at him, eyes a frosty blue.

"No offense, but I think we should split now." She deadpanned.

"Huh? Why?" Rin pinched the bridge of her nose.

"Look, I've helped you this far, but now that you've officially decided to join in the war, we will be enemies from this point on." Rin stated, looking like she'd rather be doing something else than laying this out to him.

"Speaking of which, Rin," Came the disembodied voice of Archer, only to form behind his Master, arms crossed. "If an easy opportunity presents itself should we not take advantage of the situation?" He drawled.

"No," she said, turning from Shirou to Archer, "I gave my word that I wouldn't attack him tonight. And you are following that order, Archer."

He sighed, annoyed.

"You're really making this War hard if you won't take an opportunity to thin out the competition," a wry smirk formed on his lips, "Don't tell me you have a crush on the boy?"

Blushes went up both Shirou and Rin's faces, the latter turned towards the imposing Servant in red.

"What? That's not it at all!" She threw a look back at Shirou, then back to Archer. "It's just, he stopped Saber from taking you or me out, I owe him you know?"

Archer sighed in defeat, "Very well, just let me know when you decide to act serious, Master." He said, disappearing into Spirit Form.

Rin turned back towards Shirou and Saber, face set. "Alright, I won't attack you or Saber for twenty-four hours. After that, it's War." She said determinedly turning down the street.

"Are you sure we have to fight?" Shirou asked, and Rin's feet stopped.

"What do you mean? It's a War-" Rin started, but Shirou interrupted.

"That's not what I meant," he said complacently, "isn't there anyway for us to work together?

"What?" She asked incredulously, was he asking for an Alliance?

"I'd rather not fight you if I don't have to, Tohsaka." Shirou said in a very earnest and _genuine_ tone.

"What? Why?" She demanded, he shrugged.

"Because I think you're a good person, you didn't have to help me tonight, but you did. You didn't owe me anything, and yet you helped me anyways," a smile was on his face, something Rin was not prepared for. "I like people like you." He finished.

"C'mon Saber," he said continue to walk down the road, turning to Rin briefly, "just sleep on it Tohsaka."

For the first time in her life, Rin was speechless.

As they walked, Saber moved closer to Shirou.

"Master?" She asked in a whisper.

"Yeah?"

"If you attempt to make an alliance, I'd ask you to consult me first."

"Oh, sorry Saber." Shirou said, a little abashed.

"Pay it no mind, personally I think Rin would be an ideal ally."

"Thought so too, now let's get back and-" Shirou started before the presence stopped him. A presence he had felt the day before, that had started his hunt for Holy Grail.

"Saber-!"

"I feel it." She said, turning.

Behind them, Rin stared in shock at two figures on the rise of road, one of them eerily familiar to Shirou and Saber.

"Have you all finished talking now?" The little girl asked, dressed in the same purple coat Shirou had seen her the night prior. Her voice was pleasant and childlike, but behind it Shirou could sense intellect and something akin to malice.

Rin pulled back to where Shirou and Saber stood, looking not at the girl, but her Servant. The Servant was colossal, standing at least eight feet tall, hair wild and tangled, skin grey and thick, with a bulking physique that made even Rin gulp. Besides that, the energy emanating from this guy was overbearing, Shirou wasn't skilled in reading Mana levels, but he could tell this guy would outclass Lancer, Archer and even Saber in terms of Mana alone.

"Berserker..." Rin said in a hushed whisper.

"That's right!" The girl said, plucking at the hem of her coat and performing a curtsy, "Allow me to introduce myself: My name is Illya, Illyasviel von Einzbern, it's lovely to meet you Rin, and nice to see you again, Onii-chan." Both Shirou and Rin recoiled.

"I'll give you two a few minutes to either run or fight, then the real fun will begin." She said, it still sickened Shirou to hear this come from a young girl.

"Want to call a truce to take this guy out?" Shirou asked Rin in a hushed whisper, not turning away she smirked.

"I like the way you think, Emiya." She said.

"Archer, get to a good position. I'm going to need you for Fire-support." She said, and despite not being able to see him, Shirou could feel the energy of Archer get farther and farther away.

"Orders, Shirou?" Saber asked, her invisible blade poised.

Shirou felt a wave of confidence and determination infiltrate him, he didn't want to fight this war, but he didn't have a choice now. This was going to begin.

"Time's up!" Illya cried, pointing towards the three of them. "Get them Berserker."

In a split second, Berserker had left his Master's side and was sailing through the air coming towards them.

"Shirou, move!" Saber cried, moving in front of him, dropping the dark coat.

Berserker's blade was nearly there, until a barrage of arrows struck the giant and blasted him into a grass yard.

A breath, and Shirou knew what to do.

"Saber, take him out! Make sure Archer has a clear shot!" Shirou said in a voice harder than his usual tone.

"Understood Shirou." And Saber leapt into the field herself.

Looking towards Rin watching anxiously, Shirou felt the same as he watched Saber tangle with the giant Servant in extremely fast motions.

Then it dawned on him.

This was the Holy Grail War, and he had charged head-first into it.

 **Author's Note- Let me just say I'm very intimidated by the positive response on this story, I certainly didn't expect a huge response, let alone an intrigued/positive one such as this, so I thank you all deeply.**

 **So for this chapter, mainly I just wanted to write Kirei and his interaction with both Shirou and Rin, it's always a nice change of pace to write for Kirei I find. He's surprisingly easy, but also enjoyable to write for. I will admit to borrowing an aspect of James D. Fawkes' Fate Revenant Sword in this case the "sheathe" that Shirou uses, however instead of a cloth I decided to use a ring-like object, mostly so I'm not completely ripping off Fawkes cause I really respect his work with his mentioned fic, if you haven't read it yet, do it! It's solid. **

**As for why Kirei gives it to him, I think it's more of a concealment measure than an actual aid. He doesn't tell Shirou how to survive or anything, he just gives him a trinket to keep his weapon concealed, and for two good reason in my mind: Keep the Grail anonymous, so Shirou is not dragging a sword around everywhere, and two, this Kirei we're talking about, this guy I think above all else will want to Shirou suffer, he is the son of his greatest enemy after all, and in order to make one suffer, one has to draw it out, and Kirei hopes the young Emiya suffers...Heh, jokes on him.**

 **As always, questions and reviews are welcomed!**

 **Till next time,**

 **ArgoGladius**


	4. Duel of Heroes

In seconds, Saber and Berserker were exchanging blows. Fast and furiously. Despite his immense size, Berserker was incredibly quick and agile, able to match Saber in speed and swordsmanship.

Shirou's hands were clenched, in comparison to how Saber had dealt with Lancer, she looked to be barely Berserker's equal in this fight. She even trapped his weapon under her foot and made to stab him, he dodged and began to strike with his feet and fists, sending Saber back to reclaim his club-like sword.

"How the hell does that thing even count as a Berserker class?" Rin growled, if Berserker was a regular man, her glare alone would have sent him to the afterlife.

Saber lunged forward again, only to be intersected by Berserker's weapon and flung back. He was wielding that giant sword-club like a toy sword, and was still keeping Saber back.

"Tohsaka, she's not going to last long out there." Shirou said, anxiety twisting at his gut. Rin kept her gaze forward, watching Berserker's form as he and Saber battled.

Saber attempted a feint, looking to strike low before lunging up and striking downwards. Berserker blocked her aerial attack, then using his sword as leverage, forced her into the ground bearing down on her with all of his might. No matter how strong Saber was, she wasn't going to last long.

"Tohsaka!" Shirou cried.

"Archer do you have a shot?" Rin asked out loud. She glanced at Shirou then back at Berserker. "Wait for my signal."

"Archer has a shot, but we have to get Saber out of the way," Rin said to Shirou, reaching into her coat. "Keep me covered, Emiya." Without waiting for confirmation, she charged forward, throwing a red gem directly at Berserker's form, it struck at his back in a large explosion. The hulking servant reared up as if he had been stung by a bee, and that was what they needed.

Somehow Shirou found himself behind Tohsaka, taking his chance to get his Servant out of Berserker's clutches.

"Saber, get clear!" He yelled, a blue and silver blur raced from the crater, and it was all the confirmation needed to know she was out.

"Tohsaka, now!" He called, she nodded and threw another gem, a black jewel that shattered in mid-air over Berserker, looking like a glittering mist. Then, as if remembering gravity, fell upon the Servant with great force, bringing him to his knees. Berserker was now encased in a violet-tinged shell, keeping him pressed to the ground.

A volley of red arrows flew from the city lights in the distance, landing dead-center on the Crystal dome. The crystal broke, and the arrows struck Berserker, then exploded.

Shirou, Rin and Saber were all clear of the blast radius, and all three looked at the smoking area, waiting. Shirou spared a look at Saber, despite being pummeled into the ground, she looked no worse for wear, eyes focused and hands on her blade.

Even though they should have been celebrating, the three didn't move their eyes from the crater. Shirou for one could feel the presence Berserker dissipate, and wasn't going to relax until it was gone. Rin and Saber knew that the battle had been too easy, with a Servant of that raw output, nothing short of a Noble Phantasm would be able to bring that thing down.

Sure enough, the smoke cleared and Berserker stood, tall and strong, without a mark or injury.

"He's unharmed!?" Tohsaka exclaimed, eyes wide and unbelieving.

"Not even a scratch." Shirou grumbled, this thing wasn't going down easily. Saber gripped her blade with new resolve.

A childlike giggle broke the tense silence of the impromptu battle-field.

"Did you really think your Archer could defeat an indomitable hero like Hercules?" Illya called from up the road. Rin stiffened and Shirou gasped.

That...thing was the Legendary Hero of Greek Mythology?

"...Shit." Rin cursed, and Shirou agreed.

Berserker...Hercules tensed his whole body, raising his sword-club slowly from the ground, Saber matched him. The blonde warrior turned a side-glance towards her Master.

"Shirou, I am going to try and lead Berserker elsewhere, into the hills to give Archer a superior target. When I do, I want you to run and get back to your home safely." She said, before he could protest Saber lunged forward and met Berserker's blade, then began to lunge away, towards the woods in the hills. Instantly Berserker followed, completely ignoring the undefended Shirou and Rin.

Looking up towards the road, Shirou realized Illya had disappeared as well. He let in a breath, the oppressive force of Berserker fading...but so too was the presence of warmth and steel that had emanated from Saber. She had left to buy Shirou time to escape, to keep him safe.

"Emiya." Rin's voice broke Shirou's internalized thoughts.

"You should take Saber's advice and go. Archer and I will make sure Saber makes it back to you in one piece," she assured, but saw no confirmation from him. Her face turned into a scowl, "Get your ass home, Emiya!" She said forcefully, turning and running up the hill.

As Rin followed both Servants into the hills and the cool air of the night began to bite into his skin, Shirou considered taking her advice, but then he looked down at the three Command Seals on his hand. They were the physical manifestation of his contract with Saber, and now the agreement they shared in fighting in this war. Could he really run now? With her life on the line? With Rin's? Despite the two of them better equipped for the situation at hand, Shirou knew an extra set of hands couldn't hurt, besides, he had a few tricks up his sleeves that even Tohsaka couldn't count on.

"Sorry, Tohsaka, but I'm going to have to disagree with you on this one. Some help never hurt anyone." Shirou said, pulling the trinket that Kotomine had gifted him out of his jacket, he imagined grasping the hilt of the blade, and sure enough he felt it. Then he simply pulled, when he opened his eyes, a curved blade with a circuit of green energy running down it's length was in his hands. He looked up to the dark hills that seemed ominous in the moonlight.

"If this a war, I'm not going to run." Shirou said, beginning the run into the hills, knowing that both Tohsaka and Saber were risking their lives up there.

No one was going to die on his watch. Not today.

* * *

Kotomine scanned the passage from the bible he was expected to have as the "Priest" of New Fuyuki. However, the passages were blurring and running together, despite his composed and restrained nature, he was very pleased and dare he say excited. His greatest enemy had a son, found in the aftermath of the fire, he vaguely remembered him as one of the Orphans of the calamity. And consequently, the only one rescued.

By Emiya Kiritsugu.

A small smirk came upon Kirei's face, remembering the expression that had come across the boy's face when he mentioned the fire. He truly had suffered then, as he most likely had suffered when his Father died from the Grail's curse. To an extent, Kirei had always regretted not being able to defeat the legendary Mage Killer, he regretted not killing him outright, drowning him in the blood of his homunculus pet.

"Having pleasant thoughts, Kirei?" Asked the voice the fake Priest had expected.

"Indeed," he said, while he looked bland and neutral, he was actually ecstatic. "It feels like I've been reacquainted with an old friend."

"It's his brat right?" The other man asked, a tone of amusement in his voice.

"Adopted, but yes."

"And he's the Master of Saber?" The other asked.

Kirei chuckled.

"Already eager, Gilgamesh?" He asked, turning to observe the blonde King of Heroes slouched against the bench.

"Ten years is much too long to have been parted from such a succulent treasure." Gilgamesh purred, Kirei wouldn't have been surprised if he licked his lips at the thought.

"Might I remind you that we are not to play our hand too early?" Kirei asked, but a chuckle was in his voice.

"Oh don't worry about that, dear Kirei, the greatest treasures are the one that must be waited for, and claimed when the time is right." The blonde said, then frowned.

"It seems your attack dog has left, looks like I'll have to drag the mongrel back before he does anything too damaging." Gilgamesh said in annoyance, starting to get up.

"No," Kirei said, stopping him. "Let him play, he might just be of some use."

* * *

As Rin ducked behind a tree to avoid Illya's familiars, she realized how bad of a situation she was in.

Following Saber and Berserker had been easy, both left craters every time they met, so finding them wasn't all that hard. They eventually met in a graveyard, a smart move by Saber, it gave her space to move, but also cover against Berserker's onslaught. However, Rin's objective was Berserker's master, Illya. Surprisingly, she had found her effortlessly, she was watching the battle from a ridge, giving her a complete view of the battle field. But also leaving her exposed. Rin had decided to flank her, take her out while her back was turned. Unfortunately, she had apparently been prepared for that, as she constructed two familiars from her hair, and those bastards were hard to hit. No sooner had Rin destroyed one when Illya pulled out two more.

The odds were not in her favor...however, she had one option that might just work.

Calmly walking from her hiding place, Illyasviel gave her a surprised look.

"Oh? You've come to fight head on? Brave, Rin, but very stupid, even for you." The small Master quipped, Rin ignored the jab, keeping her eyes focused on the familiars around Illya, they were constructed to look like birds, and were flapping their wings, hovering back and forth over their master.

Reaching into her coat, Rin threw a green gem, and a large emerald appeared as a shield from her front. Letting energy run threw her circuits and into her left arm, the Magus raised her arm and began to fire her signature Gandr shot. At higher levels it could kill, in lighter shots, it'd give a bad cold, in any case Rin was armed.

One of the familiars tried to go around the shield, the difference of cover from the others was all she needed to pick off the one without having to worry about the others. A single shot to it's wing disintegrated it mid-flight. Another one of the birds was trying to go beneath, dodging as Rin tried to exterminate it. She was close to a killing shot...

The emerald shield shattered, a glowing white shape burying itself in the dirt behind her. The damn familiar had changed shape and destroyed her cover! She was in the open, with a Familiar on her flank, one in front, and a mini-mage set on killing her where she stood. The wheels in Rin's brain worked overtime to find a way out, unfortunately, none were forthcoming.

"That's sad," Illyasviel said in a disappointed tone, as if daddy didn't get her the present she wanted. "I was really hoping for a fight with you Rin, but I guess this skirmish will have to do."

Rin tensed, readying a Gandr shot and then hopefully make a break for it. Any other option was a higher risk of death.

She began to move, the Familiar in the shape of the sword left the ground and barreled towards her. Rin's mind went blank, nothing coming to her defense.

"Tohsaka!" Came an extremely close voice.

Before the familiar could strike her, a blade struck it, not destroying it but sending it out of it's path and into the woods. Turning, Rin instantly recognized the Red Hair and golden eyes.

"Emiya?" She asked.

"Onii-chan?" Illyasviel asked in wonder, Shirou didn't answer, his mouth was open and declaring an incantation while taking Rin's hand in his own.

 _"...Double accell!_ " Suddenly an energy from Shirou overtook Rin, and he ran.

The energy, she realized, was a bounded field, and as the area around them warped and seemed to crawl, she realized that Emiya was altering time, going double the speed of regular time, innate time control essentially. As they escaped Illya's offensive, she realized that it was a handy trick to get out of Illya's line of attack, however the strain on the Mage would be almost hazardous, especially if he had someone else in his Field.

Sure enough, having escaped Illya's clutches as they set off into the woods, Shirou stumbled and the Field collapsed. He would have landed face first into the ground if Rin hadn't caught him.

"...Thanks, Tohsaka." Shirou panted, wiping the sweat beads from his forehead.

Rin smacked him on the back of the head, then put him in a hold, arm bent behind his back, thrusting him against a tree.

"Hey! What are you doing?" He demanded, really was he that slow?

"I thought I told you to go home, Emiya," Rin growled, jerking his arm up higher. "Don't you know when to take a hint that the situation is dangerous?"

Instead of retorting, Shirou just chuckled. Unfortunately for him, that only made Rin even angrier as she twisted his wrist.

"What!?"

"Last I checked, Tohsaka, we had a truce, it wouldn't do me well to let you get killed would it?" Shirou asked, suddenly pulling out of her hold with an incredible surge of strength.

Ignoring his sudden break from her hold, Rin fixed him with a glare.

"At what cost to you? Needlessly risking your own life for another Mage, and on top of that another Master? Disobeying your Servant's plead to run, instead heading head first into a fight between two Magi obviously your better?" She asked, eyebrows pulled into a frown.

"I'm not going to sit back and let people die for me," Shirou said with sudden steel in his voice. "Even if I died, I'd rather see you all live than have you die while I'm twiddling my thumbs at home," Rin was speechless at the sincerity of Shirou's words. "I may not be a proper Magus, but I know I'm not going to let my abilities go to waste for some senseless or selfish gain. If this is a war, I won't stay at the sidelines while others pay for my decisions," Shirou fixed Rin a glare that gave her a shiver. "Now if you have a problem with that, Tohsaka, better say so now."

Again, Rin was speechless. Emiya Shirou, an enigma that only got more complicated the more she learned about him. Really, he should be someone easy to figure out, but something was there that Rin couldn't make heads or tails of, and it annoyed the living hell out of her.

Unfortunately, she didn't notice him tense up so suddenly.

"Damn kid! I'm liking you more and more!" Came a sly, relaxed tone. Shirou and Rin turned to face a familiar spear man, resting leisurely on a branch, having watched the exchange between the two.

"Lancer..." Rin said darkly.

"Heyo!" He smirked, baring pronounced canines.

* * *

Saber evaded another blow from Berserker, watching as another tombstone was shattered. She landed on a cross of stone and kept her eyes on the other Servant, despite her hopes, the battleground wasn't making a lot of difference, this Servant was faster and stronger than her. If anything, the tombstones barely slowed him down.

Were Saber at full strength, she would easily be able to outlast Berserker, with a steady supply of Mana from a proficient Mage, using her Noble Phantasm would be simple and efficient. However, with her limited Mana reserves, such an action was nothing short of suicide in her participation in the Grail War. If she didn't use her attack, she would last much longer, but not indefinitely. Berserker was a Servant that couldn't be defeated at anything less than full strength.

The other Servant stood upright, staring her down with a glowing eye of madness that usually would serve to intimidate any opponent. However, Saber was made of sterner stuff, and she would not be dissuaded by this monster of a man. Despite his madness, she did acknowledge his advanced swordsmanship that hadn't been lost. While his technique was less refined and structured as hers, it was extremely effective, even against her.

Knowing that standing still was going to get her nowhere, Saber opted for another option, if she could disperse herself among the graveyard, maybe she could encircle him and get a killing strike. It was unlikely to work, but her straightforward attacks were not going to give her victory today, nor survival. If she wanted the Grail, she would need to win, no one was going to gift either to her.

As she started forward, Berserker mirroring her, a blue and red streak intercepted his blade, and delivered a series of fast and powerful strikes against the massive Servant. Normal eyes wouldn't be able to track the movements, but Saber was gifted as a Servant with advanced sight and reflexes, far beyond a human's. The one battling Berserker, was...Lancer.

The Hound of Culaan was trying, unsuccessfully, to break Berserker's defense, while able to compete with the speed, his strength was less than what was needed to beat him. After an attempt to lunge, and a large sword-club swinging down to decapitate him, Lancer withdrew. Saber tensed when he landed near her.

"Heyo, Saber," he greeted cordially, grinning. "Fancy meeting you here."

Saber tensed, "What is your business here Lancer? Have you come for my Master?" She asked, raising her invisible blade.

To her surprise Lancer lowered his spear and held his hands out non-aggressively.

"Relax, I actually just talked with your Master, he told me to come help you." He said calmly.

Saber lowered her blade by a hairsbreadth, he did seem to be sincere, and she hadn't felt her contract fall through. But why would Lancer help them now? He had promised to kill them both if followed, what changed?

"Why would you help us?" Saber asked, turning to spare a glance at Berserker, who set his eyes on them, immobile.

"Let's just say this, I'd rather not wait till the end to tangle with Berserker, I figure we might as well kill him now while we're still friendly," Lancer dropped his spear, holding it in a ready position, "'sides, my master is a coward, and I really am getting sick of following his orders."

He cast a side-glance at Saber, standing to face Berserker.

"Gotta say though, Saber, your master may be a bit clueless, but he's got the makings of a warrior, and a heart of gold. You could've sprung worse." Lancer appraised.

"..." Saber said nothing, turning to face Berserker with uncertain glances towards Lancer.

"Alright buddy," Lancer called, staring at Berserker as a wolf would his prey. "Let's see what you're made of!" Lancer charged, and Saber followed.

Berserker swung his sword horizontally, hoping to take both of them out in one strike. Saber swerved left, Lancer right, lunging towards Berserker as his weapon swung wide.

Saber pressed herself behind her sword, going for a stabbing wound, Lancer did the same on Berserker's left. To anyone watching, it would've looked like a classic case of _check mate._ However, that would not be the case.

Saber's invisible sword stabbed clean through Berserker's hand that had risen to meet her, but he clutched her guard, stopping her from advancing. The massive Servant had cleanly dodged Lancer, and now his sword-club made a swing down for his form. Before the blade struck, the Spear man had been able to raise his weapon in defense.

A cloud of dust and debris erupted from ground Lancer had been smashed into, for a second, Saber worried that he had been killed. No sooner had the debris risen, than the red spear of Lancer raised and sliced Berserker's arm, nulling his grip on Saber's weapon. The swordswoman cut cleanly through Berserker's hand, and slashed at his neck.

The head moved, and the Sword-club of Berserker grazed Saber's armor, sending her crashing through several gravestones. Saber's back was pressed against a large tree on the edge of the cemetery, assessing her injuries, she realized the strike hadn't done so much as blunted her armor, and that instantly was repaired.

She stood up, opening her eyes to see Lancer dueling brutally with the behemoth, he had an advantage now that Berserker's right arm was injured and his left was not his strong hand with his weapon. Saber readied her blade, and charged forth, poised to strike. Lancer evidently saw her coming, leaping into the air and stabbing through Berseker's good arm, pinning him to the ground with his spear, effectively disabling the other Servant.

Saber let her energy flow into her blade, unraveling the invisible air for a few moments as her sword pierced Berserker's hide. For a moment, there was silence, then the entire back of the Servant blew out, energy charging from his back like a roaring fire.

In seconds, it was over, and the invisible air once again concealed her blade.

* * *

Tohsaka Rin and Emiya Shirou watched from the safety of the woods, having made a deal with Lancer to aid them in the battle they simply observed.

"Something's not right..." Rin muttered, unconvinced of Berserker's demise.

"That was too easy..." Shirou agreed, nervously clutching his hand bearing the Command Seals. The overbearing presence of Berserker had been dulled, but it was quickly and suddenly coming back. He wasn't dead yet. Shirou's eyes widened in realization.

* * *

"SABER!" A voice called from the woods, Saber recognized it as her Master's. "GET AWAY FROM HIM!" He wisely hadn't used a Command Seal, but she knew something was wrong.

She leapt back to a safe distance, watching in disbelief as Berserker's crippled limbs and torn skin began to attach back to the body and heal. In moments, Berserker was at the peak of his condition, looking like he hadn't suffered a scratch

Saber tensed, _What would it take to kill him?_ It seemed nothing less than a Noble Phantasm at this point.

"So that's his shtick." Lancer said looking towards Berserker as if he solved a complex puzzle.

"His what?" Saber asked, confused.

"His Noble Phantasm," Lancer clarified, "it's not a weapon or anything like that, he can reverse death and come back to life. My bet, he has a set number." Lancer's spear shook and began to glow, he was charging his Noble Phantasm.

"And I'll be damned if I don't take one away from him." He smirked, readying his stance.

"Do me a favor, Saber." He said lowly.

"What favor?" Saber asked, not taking her eyes from the Servant before her.

"Make sure you finish this guy off, odds are, my Master will notice I'm gone when I use my Spear, then it'll be up to you. Just make sure you kill this guy so I don't have to?" The Irish Warrior requested.

"I'll make sure to do so, afterall, a sword will be more effective than a spear." She said, a light smirk pulling at her lips.

Lancer chuckled.

"Really hope we face off again, Saber, to settle the score." He said, letting his grin drop and his grip on his spear increase.

He charged forward, Berserker going to meet him, but he wouldn't be able to.

" _GAE!_ " Lancer shouted, lunging into the air, thrusting towards the ground in front of Berserker. " _BOLG_!"

Red tendrils of energy shot from the spear head and one pierced Berserker, straight through his heart, lifting his colossal form and whipping him around on it's end, before flinging him into a stone cross.

The energy around Lancer's spear dissipated, the Warrior relaxing as his Mana settled. He was quiet for a few moments, watching as Berserker's injury healed itself, at the cost of another life it seemed.

However, the Servant rose, back at top form. Saber knew she didn't have enough Mana to use her Noble Phantasm multiple times, if even once. Even with Lancer's help, Saber doubted they'd be able to take out many more of Berserker's lives before he pinned or killed one of them.

"Nice try!" Came a gleeful childlike voice, Saber and Lancer turned to see the small girl standing at the edge of the forest, bold and impetuous to show herself to them, but with a Servant like Berserker, perhaps not so. "But your Noble Phantasms won't win out against my Hercules!"

"Hercules?" Lancer questioned, before it dawned on him. "So his multiple lives..."

"Reflect the twelve labors he went through in life." Saber continued, lowering her blade.

"Which means there are ten left." Lancer supplied, lowering his spear.

Both Servants prepared another charge, however Lancer tensed before hand.

"Lancer?" Saber asked.

The Spear man grimaced before chuckling in defeat.

"Knew I wouldn't last long, Noble Phantasm caught his attention," he muttered to himself, turning with an apologetic grin to Saber. "Sorry, but it looks like my Master isn't happy with me, so he's ordering me home."

"I understand," Saber said, offering a small nod. "It was an honor to fight by your side, Lancer."

He laughed. "Don't get mushy on me now, Saber, we've got to face each other eventually ya know," He said, but cast a final smirk, "but yeah, it was a pleasure to fight with you as well."

Then he vanished into Spirit Form, leaving no trace of his former presence.

"Crush her, Berserker!" The Master of Hercules yelled, Saber repressed a wince at the sight of her, reminding the Servant of the previous War, and her friend. Irisviel.

However, as Berserker lunged at her, she let the memory dissipate, focusing on the battle before her.

* * *

Shirou watched as Lancer vanished, and Saber took on Berserker alone. She was holding like before, but he knew it was only a matter of time before the Mad Servant finished her off.

"Tohsaka, does Archer have a shot?" He asked, his fist clenched and shaking.

"He's working on it, from what he's telling me he's trying to make it a kill-shot." She replied, also keeping her eyes on the battle.

Saber swung overhead, only for her blade to be knocked back by Berserker's monstrous swing, and his free hand punching her form. She flew back rolling and tumbling. Saber stood, wincing, but alive.

"Tohsaka..." Shirou urged, she was silent, as if considering the pros and cons of letting Saber die. Shirou wondered if those were her actual thoughts, their alliance was temporary so far.

Saber charged again, trying a feint, but this time Berserker saw it coming, and grabbed her mid-air. His hands constricted slowly squeezing the Servant in his grasp. Saber angled her blade and stabbed through his arm again, the hand went lax and let her go, but his blade was already in motion.

Saber couldn't block as Berserker's Sword-Club swung and slashed along her midsection, she was flying through several more tombstones. As the smoke cleared, Saber stood up, using her Sword as a crutch, her armor was broken and bent, her torso bloody. Berserker began to slowly approach, knowing his opponent was on her last leg.

Rin suddenly flinched, and frowned quizzically. "What? Stay clear?" She asked, and Shirou knew exactly what that implied. Archer was going to hit the cemetery, and take out Berserker...as well as Saber.

Instantly, Shirou was in motion, chanting _Double Accell_ and sprung through the woods to the battleground. He drew his sword, ignoring Rin's warped speech and the pressure on his heart. He kept running, he needed to make it to Saber before Berserker did.

As Shirou reached the edge of the tombstones, Berserker began to speed up, running now. Shirou grimaced, pushing himself beyond his normal limits, he couldn't stop now. Not when Saber's life was in Danger.

Berserker lunged upward, blade raised and poised to strike Saber's weakened form.

Shirou pushed his circuits, muttering " _Triple Accell"_ and moving faster. The heat and pressure on his heart increased, becoming unbearable, but he was so close.

Five meters.

Berserker started to fall towards the Earth.

Two Meters.

Berserker was about to cleave Saber in two.

"SABER, MOVE!" Shirou shouted, lunging forward, his blade moving to intercept Berserker's.

Shirou knocked down Saber, out of the blade's path and met it with it's own, now standing where Saber has been with his blade raised. He could only register an extremely powerful force coming down on him, in aura and physicality, it would crush him, but somehow, Shirou ignored the thought as he held his ground, reinfocing his muscles and bones in his legs as much as he dared. He felt the full impact as his Bounded Field collapsed under the force of the blow.

His reinforced blade, more sturdy and advanced than any normal sword of History, shattered like glass hitting a marble floor.

Shirou only registered his blade breaking and a warm feeling that erupted down his chest, he knew instinctively that his front had been cut open, and he was wounded. The force of the blow was such that it blew him back, meeting a grave's tombstone. A sick cracking sound met Shirou's ears, and he knew it wasn't the stone.

Dimly, Shirou could recognize Saber's presence next to him, opening his eye he could see she was still bruised and bloody, but still very much alive. Ahead of them, Berserker was approaching, slowly, dragging his weapon behind him. In any other situation, Shirou might have laughed at the cliche Horror-movie quality of it, but nothing about this was funny. Berserker approached, and Shirou braced himself for the end, he'd tried to save someone, the Spirit of an already dead Hero, and ended up getting both of them killed for his trouble. It all felt like a sick joke, and he couldn't stand it.

However, a spark of hope struck Shirou as he saw a familiar red coat flapping as a fierce figure ran towards them.

Tohsaka was coming to their rescue.

She threw several gems at Berserker's backside, all striking him, but appearing to do little damage. It did, however, attract his attention towards her and away from them.

Slowly, Berserker approached Rin who steadily was backing up, drawing him into the clearing...which could only mean.

Despite the pain, Shirou stood and grasped Saber's hand, she turned to him in surprise.

"C'mon," he said, resisting the urge to wince as his broken ribs and what felt like a clavicle protested against his movement. "Archer's going to light up the field." Saber nodded wordlessly, and hoisted Shirou's good arm over her shoulder and dragged him to the edge of the cemetery.

Setting down behind a large and thick tree in the forest, Shirou watched as Rin threw a final gem at Berserker's eye, blinding him temporarily, then running off. A split-second later, Shirou felt his circuits flare...like he had reinforced or projected something...but he hadn't.

With a sound equivalent to thunder, a blazing red bolt flew from the distant city lights and struck Berserker. Then the center of the graveyard was encompassed in an explosion, the shockwave of which made Shirou wince as his broken bones shook. His grip on Saber's shoulder increased to such a degree that he was sure if she wasn't a Servant, it would have bruised her pale skin.

In moments, the shockwave cleared, and Shirou, with a pleasant warmth that seemed to spread in his chest, lost consciousness, falling into Saber's arms as she called his name.

* * *

Rin stepped out from the singed edge of the cemetery, gaze focused on the smoking crater where Berserker had stood. Her body was tense, having watched Lancer and Saber both take a whack at the Servant, only for the behemoth to rise up again and attack with more ferocity. She had hoped to find Berserker's smoking corpse, un-moving, but knew that'd be too good to be true.

As if in response to her thoughts, the form of Berserker rose from the smoking crater, his body healing. Looked like he had lost another life. He started to move forward, but stopped, as if under an invisible order, and then out-stepped Illyasviel, her expression was fumed. Rin wanted to smirk and call out to the other Master, but knew with Archer so far away, she'd be dead in an instant.

Illyasviel turned towards Rin, her blood red eyes fixed on her. The Tohsaka heir had to wonder if she was going to be attacked at this moment, but it looked like Illya wasn't going to take the opportunity.

"I don't know why Onii-chan took the blow for his Servant, but with him wounded this battle holds no entertainment for me. Consider yourself lucky." The small Mage said, her expression returning to a serene child-like face.

"And just so you know, Rin," Illya said, a sinister smile pulling at her pale lips. "Next time we meet, you're dead. Archer or no."

Then Berserker picked up Illya rather gently and took off, disappearing from sight.

Rin let out a breath she didn't realize she'd been holding. So far, there had been two battles concerning her tonight, three if you counted Saber's summoning, and so far she and her Servant were no worse for wear, however...

"Rin!" A voice called, she turned and saw Saber, wounded, carrying Shirou's form slumped over her shoulder, his chest red with blood. Instantly, Rin supported Emiya's other side and turned to Saber.

"Let's get him home."

 **Author's Note-I decided to post this one cause it was slightly shorter, and also because it's all action versus the all-plot of last chapter.**

 **Not a whole lot to say about this one, save for Lancer's appearance and FINALLY using the Gae Bolg. I feel like I have a running gag of him almost using it then getting interrupted. I also did want to pay tribute to the Lancer/Saber cooperation of Fate Zero, I know this is a different Lancer, but the guy has some honorable tendencies as far as I've seen. Plus, it's nice to have one allied battle outside of Saber and Archer.**

 **Aside from that, it more or less adheres to UBW canon with a few differences.**

 **Review or PM if you have questions,**

 **Till next time,**

 **ArgoGladius.**


	5. Alliance and Allegiance

_There was a sword in the darkness, a pure and divine weapon that seemed to illuminate the shadows around it. The blade was long and sharp, shining as if permanently polished, intricate gold and blue patterns were etched just above the guard. The guard itself looked to be molded from the purest gold, with blue designs etched into it, complimenting the blue leather grip of the hilt._

 _The power and presence that emanated from the blade was pure and...holy. Not a holiness that came from interpretation of scripture, nor of a sermon speaking of the sins of the people. This was true divinity and purity, not something to be preached or recited, something that was simply...there. It was a divinity that couldn't be grasped by an ordinary person, it was only a weapon that could be grasped by a certain kind of person._

 _Shirou couldn't quite describe it, even as consciousness seemed to claim him, he could only reach for the weapon, but he couldn't wrap his hands around it. He couldn't grasp it. It was strange, he thought as his thoughts wandered, he had seen images of this sword all his life, but this was the most vivid and detailed image he had ever seen. It was like having a blurred photograph for a long time, acknowledging that image for what it showed, then seeing the clear and detailed image finally. Picking up details previously ignored, and setting a different tone of it even._

 _The sword began to fade in Shirou's mind, but not without taking the darkness with it._

Shirou opened his eyes to see his room, illuminated by the sun, bathing it in Gold. Dimly, he wondered why he was sleeping in so late, it may have been the weekend, but he usually rose with the sun, not after it.

As he shed himself of his blankets, he realized his torso was covered with bandages, wrapped around his midsection tightly against his skin. Confusion invaded Shirou's mind, first concerning the bandages, seconds as to where they came from. Looking up, he spotted the blood-stained uniform jacket, with red stains on the back and front.

It all came back to him in an instant. The Holy Grail War, Lancer killing him, Saber, reacquainting himself with Tohsaka Rin as a fellow Mage and Master. The strange and eerie feeling of the Church, the Fake Priest Kotomine and his dead eyes, Illyasviel and Berkserker. The battle in the woods and cemetery, Lancer aiding in their battle. Shirou rushing into save Saber from Berserker's strike, and finally the strike from Archer that had hit Berserker, ending the battle, but also the last place Shirou remembered anything.

Checking his bandages, Shirou noticed that he had no injuries, the scar from Lancer remained but was healed over. Aside from that, his skin was unmarred by any scrapes or burns, even the scar he should have suffered from Berserker's strike cutting through his chest. Again there was nothing, and it unnerved Shirou more than he would have liked.

"Good, you're awake." Rin stated as she slid open the door to Shirou's room. Having changed from her school uniform to a red sweater embroidered with a cross, along with a black skirt and leggings, Rin didn't look her usual self, at least as far as Shirou had known her.

"Tohsaka..." Shirou began, not really knowing where to start. The girl held up a hand to hush him, turning towards him with haughty blue eyes.

"First...I want a thank you." She practically demanded, crossing her arms.

"Okay...what for?" He asked, grogginess was not the problem, overall confusion was.

"For dragging you all the way from the cemetery to your home, and dressing your wounds for you." Rin said, her eyes narrowed like a child expecting a present. Shirou never expected to know the school idol that well, and the more he knew her true self, the more terrified he became of what else was Tohsaka Rin.

"Wait, you did?" Shirou asked, checking under the blanket to see that he was wearing different pants than what he wore last night.

"You changed my clothes?!" Shirou suddenly cried, his face going red. Rin smirked.

"What's the matter Emiya? Worried I'd find something important?" She asked slyly, Shirou gaped, speechless. Rin suddenly let out a huge surge of laughter, falling to her knees holding her stomach as tears fell from her laughing face.

"W-What?" Shirou asked indignantly.

"Y-your face!" She gasped for breath. "It was priceless!" Then she started laughing again.

Shirou felt his face burn as Rin practically laughed her ass off on his floor, occasionally calming down, then going back into fits. Even if it was at his expense, Shirou couldn't help but notice that he hadn't seen Rin laugh before, at least not to this extent.

A few moments later, Rin's laughter finally died, and wiped a tear from her eye and stood up.

"Don't worry, I didn't see anything, actually Saber practically did everything herself, wouldn't let me within two feet of you." Rin said thoughtfully, it didn't diminish Shirou's blush, knowing Saber had practically took care of him and changed him while he was unconscious, but he was glad it was her and not Rin. He couldn't imagine how mortified he'd be if she had been the one, especially since she seemed like she would remind him every chance she got.

Rin suddenly turned towards him, eyes once again narrowed.

"But! I still carried your butt back here after your little stunt last night." She said, with a disapproving tone.

"Right...thanks," Shirou muttered somewhat lamely, scratching the back of his head. "But isn't that counterproductive? I mean, you yourself said that we'd most likely be fighting in the battlefield someday, wouldn't it have been easier to kill me then?"

Rin scowled, though it didn't appear to be aimed at Shirou directly. "Look, while it may have been the soundest and best sought out plan, we had made a temporary alliance last night, and despite the fact you run into things without much thought for the consequences to your own well being, you did save me. And for that, I'm grateful." She said, it sounded like admitting that was equivalent to getting teeth pulled without painkillers.

"Wouldn't be a good ally if I left you to die would I?" Shirou joked, standing up and grabbing a shirt.

"No, but I wouldn't blame you," Rin said, shrugging her shoulders. "Afterall, no matter how compatible or strong an Alliance is, one way or the other, Masters will eventually have to turn on each other, having someone else do it for you isn't actually a bad idea."

Shirou froze, staring back at Rin with a strange fire in his eyes. Evidently, the Tohsaka heir was a little taken back by it.

"If that's how a Magus can rationalize betrayal, then I'm glad I'm not counted as one." Shirou said, his usual warm voice was layered with brittle ice. Such that Rin could barely register him as the boy she had fought beside the night before.

He didn't say anything further as he left his room and continued into his house.

* * *

Saber kneeled in the Dojo, her posture was straight but relaxed, as if in a meditative state. In truth, she was preserving mana. While the battle the night before hadn't been too strenuous, she had been wounded, and used some of the energy of her Noble Phantasm, not all of it, but enough to take one of Berserker's lives.

She hadn't expected to be summoned again to this era, and certainly not so quickly. From what she had gathered, it was a scant ten years after the previous war, odd considering that the grail only materialized every sixty years since it's creation. Saber believed that the events of the previous war must have somehow caused the Grail to reappear now, perhaps the energy gathered hadn't been expelled, causing it to appear sooner.

It didn't matter, she was here, and this time she would win, and finally make her wish.

Saber felt the presence of her Master approach, the connection between them was frail, but she could feel him more clearly the closer he was. Like now, she could feel his presence as if he were a proper Master, but that was only due to proximity.

The door slid open, and her Master; Emiya Shirou, stepped in. His hair was wet and his clothes were fresh suggesting that he had just bathed. He closed the door behind him and sat down in front of Saber, facing her but kept his eyes down. Silence encompassed the Dojo, and while Saber wasn't one to break it, she knew it was pertinent to asses the battle the night before, and to discuss their tactics for the war. However, that could wait until she was sure that Shirou was recovered.

"How are your injuries?" She asked. He looked up, wordlessly lifting his shirt to show a torso completely barren of injury.

"Healed, what about you?"

"Master, my wounds have also since healed." She replied shortly.

"Right, sorry. Servant and all. Tohsaka said you wanted to talk to me about something?" Shirou asked as if dreading the result.

"Yes," Saber said, looking Shirou straight in the eyes. "Master, your actions last night were completely unnecessary and dangerous, despite the fact that you undoubtedly saved me from a certain death blow, a Master cannot sacrifice his life for the sake of his Servant. As such, I would request that you retire from such actions."

Shirou sighed, then his gaze hardened,"Look, while I appreciate your concern for me, Saber, I can't just sit back and let you fight my battles, I can't ask you to fight on my behalf."

"You don't have to, it's my duty," Saber stated, leaving no room for argument. "Shirou, when a Servant is summoned, they understand that while they have their own ambitions and goals, they are to serve their Master, if not for the sake of loyalty or decency then for the sake of convenience. The war would be won more easily with both a Master and Servant, the Servant fights the battle while the Master supplies them with Mana to keep fighting. A Servant is a tool, Shirou, a weapon to be wielded by their Master for the sake of the war." Silence.

Shirou stared at Saber for a long while, turning every so often as if in thought, his brows furrowed and posture tense. While she may have been rather forward with her position, it needed to he said, Saber could tell her Master was no simpleton, but his ideologies were completely out of perception for a Magus.

Shirou finally sighed and looked up again, this time, Saber was taken aback by the fierce Golden eyes that stared into hers, they weren't threatening or sinister, but...intense.

"But, you're a person," Shirou deadpanned. "Or at least you were a person with your own ideals and goals in your previous life, I just don't think I can degrade you as a person."

"It's not about degradation-"Saber started, but Shirou cut her off.

"Just listen! Please! I understand this a war, I understand that this means I'm liable to people coming after me, I know that innocent people are going to be at risk. But don't think for one minute that just because you're my Servant that I'm not going to treat you as a person, as far as I'm concerned, you're my partner in this. And partners watch each other's backs, in combat or support."

Shirou exhaled, standing to his feet, oblivious to the shocked expression of Saber.

"Well, I'm going to set up breakfast, you're more than welcome to join us." He said, as if disregarding his previous statement regarding the war.

"Thank you Shirou, but I don't require sustenance as you or Rin do." Saber tried to politely decline.

"Are you sure? I mean wouldn't food be a craving by someone who used to live?" Shirou asked, Saber frowned.

"I'm not here to engage in pleasures, only for the contest of the Holy Grail." She replied.

"Yeah, I got that bit, but c'mon, you have a chance to eat food you probably haven't ever tried before. Why not enjoy the time period while you're here?" He asked.

Saber couldn't really comprehend what was being offered to her, while she had enjoyed a few luxuries in the previous Grail War, she had never truly indulged herself in things like food or sleep, she had required neither. Now, she was being offered both, by a Master who didn't know anything about her or her nature, in her own time he'd be called a fool, or too trusting, too welcoming. In this time though, while it wasn't exactly a foolish thing to do, it was unusual, regardless though, Saber found herself nodding gently.

Shirou lowered his hand, apparent that he wished to help her up, while touched by his thoughtfulness, Saber stood on her own. She didn't want to seem rude or ungrateful, but she was no fragile flower to be aided and waited on every other moment, she was a Warrior, a Knight, and one thing you couldn't do, you couldn't step on the pride of a Knight.

"I accept your invitation, Shirou. Please, lead the way." She said, he nodded and led her out of the dojo.

* * *

Breakfast was a bit of an awkward affair, while both Rin and Saber seemed to enjoy the food he made, Shirou couldn't help but feel tense at the dinner table. He had a fellow Magus, a Rival Master at that, and a Heroic Spirit of the past at his dinner table, eating as if they were house guests. Now that would have been fine if Shirou had known them for an extended period of time like Sakura or even Issei, but these two, he'd barely met them officially last night and now they were eating his food. Even if it wasn't quite as insane as the night before, Shirou felt himself questioning his sanity again, shaking it off knowing it was real.

After cleaning up, Shirou met Rin as she began to put her shoes on to leave. She gave him a sideways look and smirked.

"I'll hand it to you, Emiya, you are a talented cook, if at the cost of being a competent Mage." She said bluntly, it appeared her way of complimenting carried an edge of insult or snark with each appraising comment.

"Uh, thanks I guess," Shirou dumbly said, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. "I'm glad you liked it."

Rin looked up with slightly narrowed eyes, nothing evaded her. "Is there something you wanted to say?" She asked disinterestedly.

"Yeah, look I don't want to seem pushy with this or anything, but," he began, beginning to stutter but decided to just go for it. "We made a good team last night, Tohsaka, and with Servants like Berserker out there, I'd rather have someone who I can count on to watch my back rather than take him on solo. What I'm asking is, would you join in Alliance with Saber and I? At least until Berserker or the majority of the other Servants are dealt with?"

There, it was out, now to await the response, Shirou wasn't sure if he was anxious or hopeful.

Rin quirked her mouth in thought, weighing the pros and cons of an Alliance, Shirou could only guess she was raking up more cons than pros. Eventually she gave a great dramatic sigh and looked Shirou in the eye.

"You really are hopeless aren't you?" Shirou said nothing. "Fine, since you really don't have a chance anyways. I'll get the essentials from my house, prepare a room for me."

And then, Rin Tohsaka was out the door, Shirou staring after her, wondering why that had seemed so easy...maybe because Tohsaka had already made the decision to team up, and this was just the perfect way to accept, with Shirou asking her in what would be perceived of a position of need and desperation. In this way, Rin held the upper hand, Shirou forced to ask as if he needed her. Damn, she was crafty.

"A wise decision, Shirou." Saber said from behind him.

"Yeah, I hope so." Shirou replied, not turning.

"Speaking of rooms, I have a request." She said, he nodded and turned around.

"Did you pick out a room?"

"Yes, as our bond as a Master and Servant pair is weak, I must insist that I lay near you, as an insurance of protection." She said neutrally. Shirou raised a brow.

"How close are we talking about?"

"In order for me to protect you, I would need to sleep in the same bed as you." She said as if it was the most normal thing ever. Shirou however felt his heart beat suddenly jump and his face heat up.

"Wait, what?" He asked startled.

"Is something the matter?" Saber asked, her voice holding the slight edge of concern.

"I-I can't s-share my bed with you, Saber!" Shirou practically squealed, knowing his face was red as a tomato.

"And pray tell why?" Saber asked, her face stony.

"Well, I..." Shirou's mind was blank, how do you explain why sleeping together was a bad idea? While it wasn't going to be sex or anything, how would he explain it to Fuji-nee? Sakura? Plus, why was it absolutely necessary to sleep next to each other? No one would get that close to Shirou without Saber noticing.

Before he could phrase any questions however, the phone rang, shattering the awkward silence that had readily built up.

"Sorry, I have to get that." Shirou said, beyond grateful that he had been saved from the conversation with Saber. Said Servant nodded, but shot him a narrowed glance.

"Very well, but this is not over." With leave granted, Shirou practically ran to the ringing phone, hoping to be saved.

"Hello, Emiya residence." He said into the phone, the jovial voice of Taiga spoke into his ear from the other side.

As it turned out, Taiga had forgotten to bring a lunch with her for her Archery Club meeting she was supervising. So she 'requested' Shirou to bring her some, normally, he might grumble or remark about his Guardian's forgetfulness, but this time he was grateful for the sense of normalcy. It would at least give him something to do other than argue with Saber about her suggested sleeping arrangements.

In record time, Shirou had cooked a fairly sizable lunch for Taiga, enough to last her till evening he hoped. As he put on his shoes and coat, Saber approached him, evidently aware that he was leaving.

"Where are you going, Shirou?" Saber asked, he was almost was afraid to answer.

"My Guardian, Fuji-nee, forgot her lunch, so she's having me run it down for her." He responded without turning to face the woman.

"I see." She said, going silent.

A silence was present for a moment, broken when Saber continued.

"Then I shall escort you." She said, already slipping her boots on, having changed into clothing provided by Rin for convenience's sake: a white shirt, blue skirt, leggings and durable boots.

"Is that really necessary?" Shirou asked, at this point it felt like Saber was more of a babysitter than a Warrior at his beck and call.

"Without a proper bond and with Masters and Servants no doubt keeping sights on their enemies, I think it appropriate-" She began, but Shirou knew where it was going.

"Okay, I get it." He said, looking her over, realizing she didn't have a coat. Fumbling through his coatrack he realized his Father's coat had been lost in the battle last night, all that was left was the yellow raincoat and his jacket. It was the same one Shirou had worn last night, though it looked like Rin had repaired the damage to it, so it should do fine.

"Here." He said, handing it to Saber, who looked at him questioningly.

"It's cold out, and I don't care if you're a Servant or not, you'll freeze without one," He said, picking up Taiga's lunch and walking to the door, sliding it open. "Let's go." He said, Saber nodded, slipping the jacket on and following him. He couldn't tell why, but Shirou had a strange warm feeling pass through him seeing Saber wear his Jacket, he didn't know what it was, but it made his stomach do a few flips.

Fuyuki itself was very pleasant today, the wind wasn't as harsh, limited to a soft breeze. It was just past noon with the sun lighting up the city in gorgeous detail. Overall, it would've usually made for a very nice and carefree walk, except for that fact that Shirou's company wasn't exactly taking in the scenery, at least not in the way people usually did.

Saber was quiet, shooting scrutinizing looks at every corner, ever roof, every sewer entrance. Essentially, she was making sure there were no surprises or Servants waiting to kill him. While immeasurably grateful, this high-profile security only served to make Shirou anxious and paranoid. However, every so often, she would stop when a view of the city came up and would just look on. Her expression and posture would change, her features became softer and her straight spine would lax somewhat, it wasn't exactly a huge change, but Shirou could tell the subtle shift in her stance said something was underneath her warrior stoicism.

After a silent walk, Shirou and Saber arrived at the school, the gate open. Looking towards the main building and the courtyard, he could see police tape surrounding the building entrance and the courtyard. While he couldn't see much, Shirou could see the shredded concrete that must have been from Lancer and Archer's battle the night before. Vaguely, Shirou wondered if his blood was still on the floor of the hallway.

"Shirou." Saber's voice pulled him from his darkening thoughts.

"Yeah?" He asked, looking towards her, though her gaze was focused solely on the torn concrete he had just observed.

"Was there a battle here last night?" She asked in a neutral tone.

"Yeah, there was, the first," Shirou's hand seemed to drift towards his heart, where he had been stabbed by Lancer the night before. "That's how I got wrapped up in all this."

Realizing where he placed his hand, Shirou lowered it, hoping Saber hadn't noticed. Alas, she did, her gaze fixed on where the spear had pierced his heart, and while his other scars had healed miraculously quickly, this one hadn't, leaving a slightly raised red scar. Suddenly, Shirou remembered that Saber had looked after him after last night, no doubt seeing it as he had been treated.

The Servant's gaze shifted to the right, towards the courtyard, while on the outside it looked like she was studying the layout of the battleground last night, Shirou thought he detected some unnamed emotion emanate from Saber. Perhaps not rage, but certainly not disinterest. Something was bugging her about him being nearly killed, or something like that.

"Senpai!" Came a pleasantly familiar voice, Shirou turned to see Sakura in her archery gear jogging towards them, a smile splitting her face.

"Hey there, Sakura." Shirou said in greeting, his face splitting into a slight smile, the first he'd had for what felt like forever.

Sakura's smile lasted until her gaze fell upon Saber who stood right next to Shirou and seemed to analyze the new person with tactical efficiency. Shirou noticed this, and was worried that for a second this would scare Sakura away, but Saber dropped her analytical gaze and nodded towards the other girl.

"...Who is this, Senpai?" Sakura asked, her voice uneasy and sounding a bit...threatened?

"Oh this is..." Shirou's mind went blank, realizing he hadn't really thought of a cover story for Saber or even a name to go by, and now he had to make it up on the fly.

"...This is Elizabeth, she's an old connection to my father who's visiting for a few weeks. When I went out to bring Fuji-nee her lunch she wanted to come with and see some of the city." Shirou said surprisingly smoothly, he knew he wasn't a very good liar, but that little cover story had come out rather effortlessly.

"I see," Sakura said, hiding her face behind her violet hair. "She's staying with you then?"

Shirou frowned at the tone of her voice. "Well, yeah. She doesn't have anywhere else to stay and I figure since I have enough room, she'd be more than comfortable at my home." He said, concerned at the way Sakura seemed to be turned away...did he say something?

"Sakura, are you ok-?" He began, but of course Taiga Fujimura had the nose of a bloodhound when it came to food.

"SHIROU!" She called, even though she was only a few yards away, her eyes focused on the bag in his hands. She bolted towards him and Shirou offered the bag of food as an offering, one readily accepted by the ravenous demon. Taiga then led Shirou and Sakura back to the Dojo, Saber following at a short distance, warily keeping her eyes focused on the building.

Inside the Archery Dojo, all the members were on lunch, eating and joking with each other. A few of the more younger students were nervously stringing their bows trying to get everything perfect. Shirou had heard rumors about how Shinji had made the first year boys shoot until they hit their target without instruction, odds are they were edgy about it happening again. Although, Shinji didn't appear to be around, not too surprising, but at least that might settle their nerves.

He hadn't been back for several months, but Shirou felt right at home in the Dojo, familiar and unchanged from before and still carrying the atmosphere that was open and candid as before. While he couldn't say he wasn't tempted to come back, right now, with the way things were, Archery club wasn't on his list of priorities.

"Well, what do you know?" Came a frank and friendly voice from the back of the Dojo, out-stepped Mitsuzuri Ayako, Head Captain of the Archery club, and former partner to Shirou in the Club's leadership. She was about as tall as Rin, with shoulder-length brown hair and auburn eyes. "The great Emiya has graced us with his presence!" She approached him and gripped him around the shoulder in a show of camaraderie. Shirou had to shoot a look towards Saber who had made to intercept the other woman, she had narrowed her eyes and remained where she was.

"Nice to see you too Mitsuzuri," Shirou greeted. "How's the Club going?"

"Well," she looked over shoulder to view the members at lunch. "We've mostly gotten First-Years, and those who Shinji hasn't drove away are dedicated to the core."

"That's good." Shirou said, eyes flickering to Range that led outside.

Mitsuzuri led him to a quieter area of the Dojo, adjacent to the Range.

"So what brings you here? Interested in taking up the bow again?"

"No, I just came to drop off Taiga's lunch. Do you know what's up with the School building and courtyard?" Shirou asked to get any information on what everyone knew.

"The damages?" He nodded. "Well, I'm not too sure to he honest. From what I've heard people broke in last night and wrecked the courtyard and a classroom. Some say it's a bunch of College kids, others that it's students vandalizing in protest of Sport clubs. All I know is Fujimura-Sensei threw a fit when the Police didn't let us in, it took a bit, but they eventually pulled the line back."

"That's Fuji-nee for you." Shirou said, leaning his head back against the wall.

"Hey Shirou?" Mitsuzuri asked.

"Yeah?"

"Who's the blonde shooting me death glances?...And why is she wearing your jacket?" Shirou opened his eyes to see Saber standing rigid next to the Archery range.

"Oh that's Elizabeth, she's an acquaintance of my Father, and she's visiting for awhile." He explained casually, trying to subtly signal Saber to relax.

"Ooh, I get it." The Archery Captain said with a coy smile.

"Get what?"

"Someone has a suitor," she said, standing up. "And that suitor feels threatened."

"What?"

"C'mon Shirou, what do you say to a shooting challenge?" Mitsuzuri said, raising her voice so everyone in the Dojo including Saber could hear.

"A shooting challenge?" Shirou asked incredulously.

"Yeah, y'see I've brought up all the First Years on the legendary exploits of Emiya Shirou, Japan's own Sharpshooting Robin Hood." Mitsuzuri disappeared into the storage room, and returned with two bows and a Quiver of Arrows. She handed a bow to him.

Shirou looked around for help, but Taiga was nowhere to be seen, Sakura was actually cheering for him to shoot, beginning a chant: "Shirou, Shirou." This chant was taken up by the rest of the Archery club members, all eager to see the supposed legendary abilities they had been told of.

Finally, he turned to Saber who met his gaze, fixed upon him with a set stare. While he wouldn't have been able to hear her over the increasing chant, he could somehow make out her thoughts.

 _Show me what you've got._

Saber's lips curled into a taunting, challenging smirk, edging him on. Internally, Shirou accepted her challenge.

 _You wanna play that way huh? Fine_.

Shirou nodded and everyone began to cheer.

Shirou stepped up to the edge of the practice field, familiarizing himself with a bow once again. Instantly his feet found the right placement and his spine adjusted accordingly.

"What's the wager?" Shirou asked as Mitsuzuri came to stand next to him, she smirked.

"The first to hit their target five time wins the admiration of the Archery club!" Mitsuzuri said so the rest of the club could hear, then spoke in a whisper to Shirou. "And the Lady's favor." Gesturing towards Saber.

Shirou felt his face redden. "I...I didn't know you liked girls, Mitsuzuri." He bantered back in a whisper, trying to dispel the heat in his face.

She smirked, "You never know Emiya, besides, if I could win her favor it wouldn't matter whether I swung that way or not. I mean, she hasn't said two words to anyone but you, but still she seems to command the room."

"Uh-huh. Anyways, whenever you're ready." Shirou said, knocking an arrow.

She nodded and both raised their bows, waiting for the signal. Shirou steadied his aim, taking a deep breath and holding it. The bow was an awkward balance, the string not properly placed, if he had time he'd adjust it. The thought of reinforcing it to his new standard crossed his mind, but thought better of it, in the sanctuary of his own home sure, here in front of all these people and Saber. No. This had to be fair.

Shirou exhaled and inhaled again, waiting for the call to fire.

Sakura stepped up, looking at both Shirou and Mitsuzuri, making sure both were ready, then she raised her hand, and dropped it.

Shirou fired, accounting for the awkwardness in the bow and hitting the target right in the bulls-eye. Instantly he plucked another arrow, knocked it, breathed in, then fired. The second hit the mark, grazing the first arrow's fletching.

Then the third hit.

Then the forth.

Then the fifth hit between the marginal gap between the other four.

And the contest was over, Shirou winning out with five bulls-eyes to Mitsuzuri's three. Shirou brought his hands to rest on his hips, showing a uniform salute to shooting a bow.

There was a pregnant pause in the Archery Dojo, then, starting with Sakura, there was a collective cheer as Shirou set down his bow and bowed to Mitsuzuri. As if a wave was unleashed, a dozen or so of Archery members were swarming him, shaking his hand, patting him on the shoulder, he even felt a few questionable brushes on his behind. Through a parting in the crowd Shirou spotted Saber, a slight smile on her face and a look that suggested she was impressed, the champion himself felt a genuine smile curve his lips as well. However, in an instant, Saber's expression hardened, and her spine straightened. Was somethng wrong? Had he done something? No. Someone or something had caught her attention. Then her form was lost in a sea of Archery Club Members.

Shirou tried to make it through the crowd, but they were still too enthralled by the contest, it seemed equivalent to paddling up a downstream river, too much heading towards him as he tried to push past them all.

As the cheers began to die down, Shirou looked for Saber, only to see a flair of blue and white exit through the door. That couldn't be good.

"Sorry, I got to go." Shirou said in apology as he made his way through the crowd.

"Go gain your lady's favor, Noble Archer!" The Archery Captain yelled, Shirou ignored the burning in his face as he followed after his Servant, the crowd suddenly parting for him to make his way out.

Stepping out into the sunlight once again, Shirou's eyes widened in disbelief as he watched Saber go under the Police Tape and into the closed off building. Cursing under his breath, Shirou followed.

To his surprise, there weren't a lot of a Police Officers around, nor any investigators, in fact Saber seemed to waltz in unopposed. Despite a strange feeling tingling up his spine, Shirou followed deeper into the school after Saber, noticing that he was following the same path he had taken the night before in his attempt to escape Lancer. Climbing up a flight of stairs, Shirou's heart stopped in his chest, seeing Saber standing right over a large stain of blood on the floor. The place he had been stabbed the night before and had been on the fringe of death.

Before he could do or say anything, another figure stepped out into the hall, Kuzuki-Sensei. Tall and imposing, with square spectacles and a stoic face that seemed more like a frown even when in rest. His eyes were on Saber, studying her critically, then his eyes turned to Shirou.

"Emiya. This is a restricted area." The teacher deadpanned, no question in his voice. Shirou kept his nerves in control as he calmly approached and took Saber's hand in his own.

"I'm sorry Kuzuki-sensei," Shirou said, bowing his head respectfully. "I have a guest from abroad visiting and I thought I would show her around."

"Show her around a closed off building under investigation?"

"We got separated and she got lost, sir." Shirou said, making sure to keep his voice level.

Kuzuki didn't say anything for a few moments, studying both Shirou and Saber analytically, almost as if suspecting something was amiss. Shirou didn't lower his gaze however, this was one of Kuzuki's little tests he made for students, if they kept their eyes high even when caught in a lie, he'd generally be more lenient towards them. If they lowered their eyes however, there could only be prayers sent to that student and the punishment they'd receive.

"Is she registering to go to school here?" Kuzuki asked at last, adjusting his glasses.

"What?" Shirou asked in surprise.

"Will she be attending this school?" He asked again, shooting a studious glance at Saber once again. "We've never hosted a foreign student before, however, if she wished to attend I'd be more than happy to ask the board about it."

"Well, uh, yeah..." Now caught in a situation he couldn't rightfully resolve, he began to stutter, and stuttering in front of Kuzuki-Sensei was worse than averting your eyes.

"Yes," Saber spoke up, startling Shirou. "While I am only visiting for a short while, I would be more than interested in attending this school, if you would have me." She said, giving a short bow to Kuzuki.

He was silent for a few moments, Shirou was also speechless, in a few seconds she had averted an ugly situation from progressing. Not only that but she had...applied to go to school? Kuzuki himself continued to wear his impassive mask as he assessed Saber's response, after awhile he simply nodded.

"Very well, if you choose to go to our school then be aware that I will make sure the board allows it. You'll have to pick up an application at the front office when our regular hours are, aside from that there's a lot more paperwork to fill, but I'm sure your host will be more than able to fill that out." Kuzuki said shooting Shirou a glance before making his way down the hall. "By the way, I'd advise leaving before the investigators come back, no doubt they'll be less lenient than myself."

And like that, he was gone.

Shirou's grip on Saber's arm tightened, and he began to pull her towards the entrance of the school. "Come on, we're leaving."

After finding their way back through the building and somehow managing to avoid all interest of the few cops at the scene, Shirou and Saber began the walk back to his house.

"Why did you run off like that?" Shirou asked as they walked, despite being barely past noon on the weekend, there was no one about. Odd, but it was for the best currently.

"I had felt the presence of another Master in the school." She replied shortly, Shirou almost felt his feet trip him up.

"Are you serious?" He asked, almost unbelieving, it hadn't even been twelve hours since the battle with Berserker and already there was a Master at his school?

"Yes, after your contest I felt the presence of a spell being cast around the main building."

"What kind of spell, do you know?"

Saber frowned. "I'm not sure, I couldn't make a detailed study of it, but it seemed to be a manipulation spell of sorts. It drew the investigators out of the building."

"So you're saying a Magus did that?" Shirou asked, growing concerned over this.

"Or a Servant of the Caster class, yes."

Shirou considered this for a few moments, while he wasn't adept at discovering other Mages or magic in general unless it was potent, he didn't feel anything in the building. No presence of a Master or a Servant, in fact everything felt still. Maybe Saber had misread the feeling, or the Servant/Master had come and gone extremely quickly, or the magic used was too subtle for Shirou to pick up on. Any of the three seemed reasonable, but none had a conclusive answer.

"Did you feel anything beyond the manipulation of the investigators?" He asked.

"No," Saber frowned. "But isn't it odd that your Teacher was in the building, alone? Could he be a Master?"

"I don't think so," Shirou said, the thought did give him pause, but it was unlikely. "Kuzuki has been my teacher for the last year, and while he's a scary guy, I've never felt any thing around him that would mark him as a Magus, let alone a Master. As for why he's in the building, I don't know, he's got a lot of pull with the board and law-enforcement, odds are he asked to collect something from his classroom."

"I see." Saber said, he could see the wheels in her head turning.

"I guess we should probably bring this up to Tohsaka though." Shirou suggested.

"That would be best, yes."

"Alright, we'll let her know at dinner tonight."

They walked in silence for awhile, the sun warming the air to the point of Shirou removing his coat. The day really was beautiful, but he couldn't help but wonder if anyone was watching him, it was paranoid perhaps, but knowing you were being targeted wasn't an exactly good feeling.

Saber seemed to notice his discomfort, shooting him a soft glance of sympathy.

"You used to be an Archer?" She asked, Shirou looked up, a bit surprised she had inquired about his old hobby.

"Well, technically I still am, I just left the club awhile ago. Last year I was co-Captain with Mitsuzuri."

"Why did you leave?" She asked, she actually looked engaged and interested, unlike most people who asked about the Archery Club.

"A lot of reasons," Shirou said, putting his hands into his pockets. "Mostly though I was busy, with all the things that needed fixing around the school and with work, I just couldn't really fit in with everything else. Plus when Shinji joined, everything just became so much harder."

"I see, it's a shame then." Saber uttered.

"A shame? How?"

"The Dojo lost itself a fine Archer." She said simply, despite how casually she said it, Shirou felt a burn on his cheeks. This wasn't a regular person after all, this was a Hero of the past who could hold her own against _the_ Hercules, one of if not the most powerful Heroes in Western Mythology.

"Y-you think so?" Shirou asked, trying to keep his voice level.

"Truly, with such an intense focus and precision you would find yourself among the finest archers in Ca-" she stopped herself suddenly. "...in an army."

Shirou frowned at her pause, had she almost revealed her identity to him?

Saber went silent, focusing her gaze on the Horizon, evidently trying to end the conversation.

"Well, thanks. That meant a lot." Shirou said at length.

"For what?" Saber inquired, looking towards Shirou out of her peripheral vision.

"For the compliment," he clarified. "No one has ever really said anything really."

"Have they not?" Saber asked, sounding surprised.

"Not really, the thing about having a certain talent is; people tend to revere you more as an idol than a person. They see you less as _someone_ , and more as _something_ to admire," Shirou said, watching their shadows on the pavement slowly move with the alignment of the sun. "Their admiration actually distances you from them, because they'll see your talents as something they can't achieve, and they don't even try. It's about being a figure as opposed to actually being a person."

Shirou kept walking, however, he noticed Saber's shadow had stopped. Looking back, he saw Saber's head bowed, a look of pain on her face.

"Saber?" Shirou asked, turning towards his Servant in concern.

Suddenly, Saber's head shot up, the look of pain gone as soon as it had come.

"Come, Shirou, we must return to your home." She said shortly, quickening her pace towards the house, now only a few blocks away.

Shirou was frozen in place, wondering for a minute what he'd done to offend her, if that was it. He hoped he hadn't unintentionally insulted her, Rin was scary enough, but to have Rin and an angry Saber under his roof would make this war even more violent, on the Home front.

* * *

Two hours after Shirou and Saber returned, the doorbell rang.

 _That must be Tohsaka._ Shirou thought answering the door, and there she was...laden down with several handbags and a suitcase behind her. Behind her was Archer, also laden down with several bags, and staring Shirou down with a cold, steel glare.

Wordlessly, Shirou stepped to the side for Tohsaka, keeping his gaze on Archer's, refusing to lower it. The Servant eventually shifted his gaze towards his Master, passing by Shirou without so much as greeting.

As he passed, Shirou felt a prickling sensation, as if he'd just been simultaneously prodded with a thousand needles. No not needles, this feeling was far sharper and stronger. Almost like...

"I'll take the room at the end of the hall." Rin said, holding no room for argument.

"Alright." Shirou responded, keeping his glare focused on Archer, the latter seemed to be oblivious to daggers being glared into him.

He shook his head, Tohsaka and her Servant were his allies, he had to be more accommodating if he wanted this work.

"Do you need help settling in?" He asked.

"Nah, you should start dinner though. I'm hungry." She said, already finding her way to her room, Archer following her.

As he left, the feeling of prodding points left, and Shirou breathed a sigh of relief, no longer suffocated by the aura of Archer.

As he began dinner in the kitchen, Shirou pondered why he suddenly felt such animosity towards Archer, he had never felt such a devout aggression towards anyone in his life. A part of his mind tried to justify his anger, suggesting how Archer planned to attack Saber and him last night before Berserker showed up. And then how Archer was willing to take the shot to take out Berserker with Saber still fighting him. Shirou held no illusions about it, Tohsaka's Servant had been about to kill both Berserker and Saber.

No, there was another reason why Shirou felt such a distinct opposition with Archer, it felt _natural_ , as if the two were just two people who would never get along. He had very little reason to assume this, but in his gut, Emiya Shirou felt that he and Archer could never be true allies, as soon their alliance was over, the latter would find a way to kill him. For some reason, Shirou didn't feel afraid for his life, he _wanted_ a reason to fight Archer, he wanted a reason to take him out. It had nothing to do with the Holy Grail War, it was just an instinctual feeling.

"Shirou, are you alright?" Saber asked from the dining room table, broken from his musings, he realized he had been chopping air for the last few minutes.

"Yeah, just a little out of it." He replied, immediately going back to working mode, cutting Archer out his mind for now.

Rin eventually made her way to the Living Room, sitting opposite of Saber. As Shirou was finishing making dinner he heard Rin's finger tap impatiently on the table as she waited. Seconds later, he was laying out several dishes for the three of them, it might have been a bit much, but at the very least there'd be more later.

"Itadakimasu!" Shirou and Rin said in unison, Saber following shortly after, beginning to eat the food laid out before them.

A few minutes in, Rin took a sip of the tea she had brought from home, composing herself.

"So, did you two do anything productive today?"

Shirou shrugged. "Ran some food to Taiga, got challenged to an archery contest, and..." he cast a glance towards Saber, who half-listened as she ate.

"And what?" Rin asked.

"Well, Saber thought she felt the presence of a Magus, or a Caster-class Servant at the school." He said, watching as the frown on Rin's brow creased.

"Felt a presence?" Rin asked Saber.

"Yes, while it was subtle, I could feel a manipulation spell being cast on the main building," She replied. "While it could have been from a Master, or a regular Magus, this was a more skilled and subtle manner, something most Magi are unable to do without a high amount of skill."

Rin set her teacup down, deep in thought of a Servant interested in the school. "Did you find anything?"

"Aside from a school teacher, no." Saber replied. Rin's frown returned.

"A teacher?"

"Kuzuki." Shirou supplied.

"Kuzuki?" Rin muttered to herself, pondering the idea in her head. "Did he have any Command Seals or have the signature of a Magus?"

"No, I didn't detect any semblance of Magic Circuits or Energy from him." Saber said, though it was apparent that she felt something was off.

"Hmm. I've never noticed Kuzuki to have any relation to Magic or the Magi in general, besides he's such a realistic person I doubt Magic would even cross his mind. Odds are Caster, or another Magus made the spell in order to investigate, but they probably felt Saber's presence and took off in a hurry. Kuzuki probably saw a chance to get his classwork, and with his pull with the local police, he probably wasn't too worried about the consequences." Rin theorized, it did make a certain amount of sense, another Magus might want to investigate a sight of battle between two servants, whether they were a Master or not.

"Anything else?" She asked, Shirou couldn't think of anything, but Saber spoke up.

"If at all possible, I would like to enroll at your and Shirou's school." She said, Shirou spit out his water, and Rin raised an eyebrow.

"Any particular reason?"

"As I am unable to take Spirit Form, it would be best for me to be around both you and Shirou while you attend school, if a Magus has taken interest in the premises, I believe in this doubly," Saber stated, Shirou wiped the water from his chin and the table. "Besides, with me guarding you two, Archer can investigate possible grounds where other Masters or Servants are operating from."

"So divide and conquer?" Rin asked.

"In a sense, yes."

Rin was quiet for a few moments, then nodded. "It'll take me a few days to get the 'transfer' process taken care of, including your name, place of origin, etcetera. But you should be enrolled within the next few days."

Shirou didn't say anything throughout the conversation, at first he was going to protest, argue that Saber would never be able to pass for a Teenager, then he remembered how Kuzuki had thought Saber was the correct age. Even stating that he'd try and pull some strings to get the schoolboard in on it. Shirou then looked at Saber, really looked at her.

Despite her regal features and bearing, she couldn't have been more than twenty years old at the most. No, her attitude and bearing had made Shirou assume that she was older, early-mid twenties maybe. But, she couldn't have been physically much older than him. This brought him to the thought of who she was, if she was a Heroic Spirit, had she been this age when she died? How old had she been really?

Again Shirou was reminded that he was fighting a war with a dead hero, and that somehow, they had to defeat other heroes to get the Holy Grail. It was sad, if Saber had only been his age when she died, he wondered what the circumstances were, had she been forced to fight? Was it a sense of duty? Did she have anyone she missed?

He was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he didn't realize he was asked a question until he looked to see Saber staring at him expectantly.

"I'm sorry, what?" He asked.

"We were just talking about my quarters." She said.

Her quarters? What in the-oh.

Oh.

"Please tell me you've changed your mind about staying in my room?" He asked hopefully, she frowned, apparently not.

Shirou felt his head slump. They were in a war and this was one of the more sensitive issues?

"Look, not only will it make me uncomfortable, but imagine my Guardian, Fuji-nee, she will have a cow if she even catches wind of us sharing a room. Hell, she'll have a dozen knowing we're in the same room." Shirou protested, but judging my Saber's expression, he wasn't getting anywhere.

"Be that as it may, this is your house, and as this is my request, you as host must oblige." Saber retorted.

"It's not about hosting! It's the fact that I'm a guy and you're a girl! It wouldn't be proper."

Saber's gaze turned to ice, and Shirou gulped.

"Shirou, my gender is irrelevant. This isn't a courting ritual, nor is it anything of a Romantic or Martial nature. It's only so I can protect you. I am a Servant and a Knight before I am a woman." Saber said, her voice matching her icy tone. Even Rin looked taken aback at her tone of voice. Shirou was at once fearful and yet keenly aware of the heat rising to his cheeks.

He swallowed, but didn't dare look away. "Alright," he said, sighing in defeat. "If this is what you want, I can't do anything short of a Command Seal to stop you." Shirou said somewhat dejectedly, Saber nodded in satisfaction.

"But, if my Guardian is here and spends the night, you have to sleep in the room around the corner from mine okay?" Saber considered this, and nodded.

Shirou sighed in relief, glad it was over.

"Aww, was that your first fight?" Rin asked, smirk plastered on her face. Shirou blushed and Saber stiffened, ready to retort.

Then the sound came.

The door to the house slid open.

Heavy and desperate steps pounded closer to the kitchen.

The thunderous growl of stomach sounded like the growl of Berserker in Shirou's ears. He closed his eyes and waited.

"SHIROU I'M-" Dead struck silence, followed by sound of rising outrage in an overprotective yet counterproductive Guardian.

"WHAT. ARE. THESE _GIRLS_ DOING HERE!?" Taiga's voice wailed, Shirou sighed, he had been afraid of this.

"Evening, Fuji-nee." He said cordially.

"Shirou..." Taiga began through clenched teeth. "Why, exactly. Is Tohsaka Rin and a Foreign girl doing in... _This house_?"

"Well, you see..." He started, at a loss for what to say.

"Fujimura-Sensei if I may?" Rin asked politely, Taiga barely dipped her head. "You see, my house is currently is undergoing renovations, initially I was going to stay at a hotel, until Shirou offered me a room here to save money."

Taiga blinked then crossed her arms. "Well, that does sound like Shirou, and what about you-?" She began, but Saber had already gotten going.

"I'm Elizabeth, a distant relation to Kiritsugu. I recently got word that his son was here in Fuyuki, and decided to visit and finish business on his late father's behalf, I also plan to study here so Shirou showed me the school today. He even has offered me a room to stay in until I conclude my business." She said with great poise and articulation, diligently picking up her cup and sipping delicately at the liquid within.

Taiga was silent for a few minutes, seemingly surprised at the well-versed nature of both girls' responses. Nonetheless she crossed her arms ready to scold.

"Regardless, it's improper for a young man who is unmarried to have girls with him in his house." Shirou wanted to lay his head down and block out everything.

"Are you saying that Shirou is untrustworthy?" Rin asked, Taiga flinched back.

"What? No, Shirou is-" The teacher started, but Rin wasn't finished.

"Because from what it sounds like, you don't seem to trust him. Is there something I should be concerned about?" Rin asked, shooting Shirou a sly wink.

"What?" Taiga cried, outraged. "Listen here missy! Shirou is one of the most trust worthy people who ever breathed. He's so obsessed with doing the right thing that it's almost annoyingly cute! I trust him to make me food, so of course he's trustworthy!"

Shirou was blushing. Not from Taiga's rather...passionate defense, but from the amused smile that graced Saber's lips as she looked towards him. Awkwardly, he tried to hide his face, to no avail.

"Then we have nothing to worry about, as you've established that Shirou is trustworthy, so nothing will happen." Rin said cheerily, Taiga looked back at her in shock, realizing she had been beaten by a student.

She sat down dejectedly, and miserably picked at the food before her.

Following dinner, and a very depressed departure from Taiga, who could only mumble a half-hearted "Wear protection." things had quieted down. Shirou and Rin devised a schedule for the Grail War, with each taking turns every other evening in scouting possible whereabouts for Servants and Masters, while the other stayed at the homestead and made dinner for the return. The resting pair would also be backup, should the need arise.

Rin spent the rest of the night on the phone, using manipulation to speed the process of accepting Saber as a student, at the end of it, she said she probably had cut out about a week of hassle in a few hours. But it would still take a few days for everything to settle just right.

Shirou meanwhile, created a new sword to replace the one he lost against Berserker, as well as tweaking the structure of his other blades in case he needed them again. Then he moved another futon into his room, right next to his. Saber said she needed to be in the same room as him, but no way was she going to be sharing his bed, that's a line Shirou wasn't willing to cross. Though the other bed was placed right next to his, so ultimately it would still be uncomfortable for him, but at least he wasn't going to be pressed against her form, that would be embarrassing.

Shirou was extremely nervous when Saber entered his room to retire for the night, no one, especially not a girl, had ever spent time alone with him in his room; and especially hadn't slept beside him. It wasn't a normal situation, by any standards, so trying to resist nervously twitching and fluttering about wasn't playing out well. When she walked in, Saber looked almost amused at Shirou's embarrassed antics, then she began to inspect the room.

"Yeah, I know it's not much, but I don't really have many mementos to put up and I-" Shirou trailed off, Saber was looking at him with a soft smile that seemed to make his heart skip a beat.

"It's...suiting," Saber said as she walked in, she looked...comfortable in here, her shoulders were relaxed and her gaze was soft. "While most would have large reflections of their personality attached, you have little to none, strange, but it makes sense for this to be your room."

"Thanks, I guess." Shirou said, opening his closet and taking out a divider, as well as sleeping kimono. He set up the divider and handed the kimono to Saber, going to the other side to change into his own sleeping clothes. When they were finished, Shirou turned off the light and laid down in his bed, Saber silently laid beside him, breathing easily and softly.

From the breathing growing softer, he could only imagine Saber had fallen asleep, unlike him. Shirou was resisting the urge to fidget, saying he was uncomfortable would be an understatement, if he couldn't settle down then this wouldn't work. At some point in the night, as Shirou tried counting sheep, he felt Saber shift in her futon, her hand resting on his shoulder.

What could only be described as warmth and strange longing overtook Shirou, a pleasant tingling feeling that instantly calmed his mind. The warmth continued to encompass him, and he found his eyes drifting shut.

"Goodnight, Saber." Shirou whispered as he fell asleep.

"Goodnight, Shirou." Her voice said, as his consciousness slipped, he couldn't be sure if she actually was saying it or if it was his imagination.

* * *

As the Servant slept, a scene played in their mind, unbidden and unwanted, but inescapable.

 _A basement of sorts, barbaric and suffocating, looking more like a dungeon than an underground level. The smell itself was pungent, rotten and stagnant. Smelling of death and decay but nothing compared to the sight below on the floor._

 _There was no floor insight, only a writhing mass of revolting worms and insects, all crawling and squirming over each other as if enthralled in an orgy of deprecation._

 _The young girl watched, shaking in apprehension and fear, unwilling to watch, yet unable to look away. All she wanted to do was to turn and run, but the claw of a hand held her down. She wanted her sister, her father and mother, but they had forsaken her to this fate, auctioned her off to another family._

 _"Welcome to the family."_

 _The cold and slimy voice said almost cheerily, then she was lifted from the stairs by her torso. She cried, kicking and screaming as she was held of the nest of squirming creatures. Held like a sacrifice, the girl cried, her blue eyes staring in abject terror towards the nest below._

 _The cold and frail hands that held onto her dropped her, and she fell. As if time slowed, she watched as the nest of revulsion came closer, and thoughts of her family fled as she was abandoned to her fate._

 _No one would come to her rescue._

 _No one could save Sakura._

Rider awoke with a start, unmasked eyes appearing normal behind the glasses she wore when not active in her Servant duties. Her fists were clenched, having felt the masses that descended on her through her Master's memory. Again, she felt the urge to take her Master and flee, however she was forbidden from doing so by said Master. Why? Her Grandfather only served to use her as a means to an end, with a supposed 'brother' who was held back by his incompetence and jealousy of his Sister's favor, despite the cost reached for that favor.

Despite the rage and disgust in her heart, Rider did not so much as twitch an eyebrow or a lip, such emotions wouldn't suit her, nor help her in any respect. They would only serve to create problems, and in order to win in this war, those problems had to have solutions.

The door to her quarters were opened, the familiar presence of the boy arrived. Much like the dream, he was unwanted yet inescapable, so long as this ruse was in place. He smirked arrogantly down to her as he stood, his eyes empty. Empty of sense, of emotion, of common traits of human decency, none seemed to apply to Matou Shinji.

"Come on Rider, we've got business today." He said.

"Of what nature...Master?" Rider forced through her lips, resisting the urge to grimace.

He ran his hand through his blue wavy hair. "We're going to draft my dear school for the war."

Rider could guess his intentions, and while she understood, she didn't necessarily support nor refute his suggestion. She simply stood, allowing her modern attire to disperse into her true clothing.

Her boots gave way to bare legs below the knees, feet adorned with form fitting sandals, metal studs from the soles giving her superior grip on any surface. Her shirt and pants disintegrated to reveal a tunic hanging from her shoulders, black as night, falling to her knees with a violet belt at the waist holding her Nails and Chain. The sleeves on her arms dissipated into forearm gloves covered with black-painted bracers.

Finally was her eye ware, the glasses turned to dust, instead replaced with a mask that instantly obscured Rider's vision, however her other senses increased in proficiency able to smell a cat wandering the streets outside. Able to hear a leaf rustling in the wind, and able to feel the vibrations that told her Shinji was leering at her. Once again resisting the urge to wince, she simply reverted to Spirit Form, awaiting her _Master_ to get a move on.

As she followed Shinji out of the house, Rider reached out across the bond with her Master, finding her walking to a traditional estate. Her heart was a bit unsteady, as if she were nervous, but she wasn't in danger. Not yet anyways. In fact, she seemed almost...excited, perhaps elated, a feeling she normally didn't get among her family. Rider allowed herself to hope that Sakura was visiting a friend that would treat her as a person and not a tool. She was only too sympathetic to that feeling of being used.

 **Author's Note- And there you have some character stuff and Rider.**

 **So the last few chapters got a few lukewarm reviews. Mostly there was a lot of constructive criticism towards the knowledge of Time Alter and it's nature. In truth it's more like a bounded field yes, but I have been told that it's been mistaken as a reality marble before, so a rookie mistake on my part. I will admit freely that I am not overly well-versed in how magic works in this universe, while I get the basic gist, I'm no where near an expert nor am I too good with the extent on how far the Magecraft can be extended for my purposes. I only ask that you all bear with me while I try and do more detailed research before I post future chapters.**

 **As for Shirou's characteristics, a reviewer did point out how I failed to explain in full what Shirou's training and knowledge were for this story, so I wish to clean that up right now.**

 **Kiritsugu did train Shirou, but not in an extremely detailed way. Essentially, he taught Shirou some fundamentals like how to form a Bounded Field, very basic stuff that most Magi know. And he did make sure Shirou unlocked his magic circuits, however he doesn't use all his magic circuits as it turns out. I'll explain more of this in the future, but for now, assume Kiritsugu taught Shirou basics, helped him with reinforcement and projection, but couldn't do any more due to the Curse of the Grail wearing him down. And to explain my reasoning for Shirou's training, while it's clear in the description that Kerry trained Shirou in case the Grail ever arose again, the truth is that he trained Shirou to protect himself in the event of the Mage Slayer's old enemies hunting him down. He wanted Shirou to have basics for him to survive on and in the event of his old enemies finding him, he would be able to hold his own, or at least escape.**

 **Many did question as to whether Time Alteration will have any effect on Shirou's Reality Marble, and I can safely say, yes. But I won't get into details just yet, I am still writing the story as we speak and need to focus on that bit when it comes. Feel free to fire suggestions my way, I just can't promise any or all will be used.**

 **The next few chapters will be slow going like this one, but so far the next two chapters are going to have a fair amount of action in them. And I plan for further chapters to have some as well.**

 **Final note is how this story will go. Essentially, this is my take on the Fifth Holy Grail war and how I would've liked to see things go. It won't go overly far into AU territory aside from the minor changes in the storyline, but I can promise that I have a solution to those wanting more original material. There is a Companion piece to this story I'm planning called _Fate/ Hell's Rain_ , which will diverge from the main story later on and I'll explain that once we get to it. It will be a bit until that story gets rolling, I have the premise down, but no solid structure or storyline as of yet. It will take elements of Heaven's Feel, but also that of the story Golden Prayers (which I highly suggest you read, solid fic). The companion will find Shirou as a lot darker in character due to what happens in the fic, as well as more conflicted concerning his ideals. If this story does not do it for you in the way of new material, hopefully _Hell's Rain_ will. But, I'm going to say that the companion fic will still be Shirou/Saber regardless of ideology present. **

**Thanks all, hope you enjoy! As always, feel free to PM or Review!**

 **-ArgoGladius**


	6. Prideful Legacy

Sakura stood in stricken silence at the person who had answered the door in Shirou's stead. She had been prepared for either Shirou or his foreign friend, Elizabeth, but she hadn't expected for Tohsaka Rin to answer the door.

The older girl's hair was in it's signature twin tails, and she was dressed for school as she was, however, why was she here...?

"Tohsaka-senpai?" Sakura asked uncertainly.

"Good morning, Sakura." Rin answered with an easy smile.

"W-what are you doing here?"

"Ah that, well my house recently underwent some renovations and Shirou was kind enough to offer me a place to stay." Rin explained clinically.

Sakura stood in place, the other girl not having moved aside to let her in, in fact she seemed to cover the whole entry way.

"You realize what this means right?" Rin asked, Sakura shook her head, biting her lip as she awaited an answer. "Shirou no longer is in need if your help, between Sa-Elizabeth and I, he'll be fine."

She said it politely enough, but Sakura understood the message: _You are unwanted here, beat it_. Despite her quiet and shy nature, Matou was particularly stubborn, equal to or even more so than the Tohsaka heir.

"Sakura, didn't you hear what I said?" Rin asked, her voice dropping in volume, almost to a pleading whisper. "You don't need to be here, go home."

To most, it would seem that Rin was being strangely emotional and gentle with the younger girl, but both knew. Both knew, and both hated it.

"Tohsaka, who're you talking to?" Shirou's voice asked from inside the house. Rin turned to call back, that's when Sakura moved. She pushed past the older girl and walked into the house.

"Sakura? Wait!" Rin cried, but Sakura ignored her, finding her usual spot in the kitchen and already starting breakfast.

For several moments she was left alone, pulling out various ingredients, splitting and cutting them into the proper amounts. Sakura had almost settled into a meditative mindset as she cooked, but then she felt the presence of someone else entering the kitchen. She turned, ready to face Rin in an argument, but instead of the blue-eyed prodigy, she met the Golden eyes of Shirou Emiya.

"Sakura? Are you alright?" Shirou asked, looking concerned. Instantly she turned away, face flushing and heart-beat increasing.

"O-ofcourseIamsenpai." Sakura squeaked as she turned back to her task on breakfast.

"Was it something Tohsaka said?" Shirou asked, she dared a glance, his golden eyes still concerned and caring. "If it was, I can talk to her."

"No, it wasn't Tohsaka-Senpai," Sakura protested. "We just...had a misunderstanding. That's all." She said, unconvincing even to her ears, but Shirou seemed to accept it.

"Alright, need a hand?" He asked, gesturing to what she had prepared.

"If-if you wouldn't mind, Senpai." Sakura encouraged shyly, brushing her hair behind her ear.

He smiled, grabbing a spare apron and setting to work. Sakura felt the warmth in her belly and chest increase, almost distracting her from her tasks, but she wouldn't be deterred.

Twenty minutes later, the kitchen table was adorned with several plates and dishes, each more appetizing than the last. Individually, Shirou and Sakura's dishes were forces to be reckoned with, together, most (like Taiga) would enlist them to make them food from then on.

No one left the table hungry that morning, even Rin, who usually ate small portions if anything at all in the mornings. No dish was untouched, and any remains were wrapped and placed in the refrigerator.

As Shirou, Rin and Sakura prepared to leave, the latter watched as Elizabeth pulled the former aside, a twinge of heat went up her chest. This was jealousy, and Sakura hated the feelings attached to it. It wasn't as if she had any slight towards the foreign woman, she was polite and kind to her from their limited interaction, but this feeling instantly stirred anger inside her belly. An anger that reminded her that her happiness would never be fulfilled, she wasn't worthy.

"Sakura?" Rin asked, snapping Sakura from her thoughts.

"Yes, Tohsaka-Senpai?" She asked. Rin looked dreadfully uncomfortable, like she was trying do or say something incredibly difficult.

"Look, I...I'm sorry," Rin said, obviously not used to apologizing to anyone. "I didn't mean to make the wrong impression this morning." She muttered as explanation.

"You...you just didn't want me to get hurt." Sakura said, the mental image of Elizabeth pulling Shirou by the hand into an empty room. It may not have been what she imagined it to be, but the way she had caught them looking at each other at the table, or the way they seemed to glow when around each other. It would be stupid of Sakura to think there wasn't a chemistry between then, it might not have been romantic...yet, but the signs were there. Sakura almost laughed, her sister might have been impressed by her perceptiveness.

"No, I don't." Rin's voice was tense, as if revealing something she didn't want known.

Sakura was about to question further, but then the screen door opened, with Shirou standing there.

* * *

"Are we ready?" He asked pleasantly, both girls nodded and they began to trek to school.

"Hey, closing time buddy." The overweight bartender said with a yawn as he sleepily polished a glass.

"Four a.m. Already huh?" Lancer asked, downing his last shot.

"Yeah, aside from you, we don't get much business anymore." The bartender said, putting down the glass and going around the cozy bar wiping tables and settling stools on them.

"That's a shame." Lancer said as he picked up his fur-lined coat and stood up.

"Hell yeah it is, and if they could drink like you, I'd be set for life!" He laughed, "What'd you say you were from Mr...?"

"Culan," Lancer said with a wry smile. "And I hail from Ireland." He said with a touch of pride.

"Shoulda known," the bartender said, wiping another table down. "I guess the legends of Irish tolerance are true."

"Or maybe I'm just a tough sell." Lancer smirked, throwing his coat over his shoulders and making for the doors.

"Oh, hey you'll be back again right, Mr. Cu-?" The bartender asked almost desperately.

"Culan," Lancer smirked, "and don't worry, I'll be back for your liquor." He said, striding out the front door and into the still-dark streets.

Whenever his Master didn't have use for him, Lancer would go out into the city. Usually going to various bars and public places to simply relish in the time period, though his favorite place was the bar, despite it's modern melancholy tone they carried. In his days, taverns were places where you went to celebrate victories and triumphs, to be spent with comrades and lovers in high spirits. In this modern world, it looked like bars were mostly for barely-mature kids looking for a good lay and the dispossessed who wished to drown themselves in drink.

It was extremely depressing, in this world, there was no love for life, no thrill of conquest or victory. Ironic that Lancer as a Heroic Spirit couldn't get drunk in this sense, the burn of this modern alcohol lacked stature, and lacked purpose. Drinking for the sake of drinking wasn't something Lancer could enjoy, drinking for celebrating victories? That he could, however, he hadn't had any victories as of yet, so he hypocritically tried to drink himself into a stupor, to no avail.

As he walked his way back to the Church, Lancer fought to contain a scowl. The thought of the Priest that awaited him didn't exactly excite him, no, even if he hadn't said so, his Master disproved his adventures when in disuse. While he usually only went about in the city by day, last night had been an exception. His Master had told him to keep watch, and with the placement of the bar, and how remote it was, he could detect magical energy easily. But with the battle between Berserker and Saber, most Servants and Masters were laying low trying to strategize.

As the sun began to peak over the horizon, Lancer arrived at the Church doors, while taking Spirit Form or using his Heroic abilities to get back would have been faster, Lancer was content to walk. To enjoy this new land to it's fullest extent.

The church was as dark inside during the dawn as it was at night, the darkness carrying with it the smell of decaying flesh. Lancer had pondered what the smell was, but his Master held no illusion to show him more than he needed to know. He wasn't exactly trusting.

"I told you not to leave, Lancer." Kirei Kotomine said as the shadows of the Church unveiled him.

"You told me to keep watch on the city, _Master_." Kotomine huffed and approached his altar.

"Indeed I did, which you decided to do in physical form, at a bar."

"With the excitement with Berserker and Saber, I doubt any Masters or Servants are going to try anything." Lancer said casually, relaxing his posture.

"It's not your duty to think," the Priest deadpanned. "You are here to fulfill the wish of your Master and to fight in their name. Nothing else."

"Which I would have, if you hadn't killed her." Lancer growled, his anger flaring.

Kirei only fixed him with an indifferent stare before turning away.

"Be that as it may, I am your Master now. And luckily for you, I have a task for you to fulfill."

Lancer staunched his rage. "Alright, whaddya got?"

"Yesterday, one of my familiars detected the presence of a Master and Servant at the school you fought at before. As well as the signature of a Magic-user that can only be Caster, I want you to keep watch on the school, observe, but do not reveal yourself to any." The Priest said, turning towards his altar.

Lancer suppressed another surge of rage upon being told to not fight. He had already gotten used to the fact that his Master was a coward, and knew he wouldn't be sent to battle anytime soon.

"Caster?" He asked, getting a hold of his emotions. "So, she's alive?"

"Evidently. It seems she survived the wounds you inflicted on her," Kirei said, smirking. "You couldn't even finish off a Servant that lacked a Master."

Lancer resisted the jab at his pride, leaving as wordlessly as he had come, letting his mortal clothing change into his regular armor and clothing, before going into Spirit Form.

The sun had barely risen by the time he had arrived at the School, hiding himself in the woods, close enough to observe, but far enough to be unseen. While Lancer didn't have as sharp sights as the Archer class, he personally had a special affinity with scents, mostly from his identity as the hound of Culan, in many ways, it worker better than his sight could.

Soon, students began to make their way to the building, the only difference Lancer could make out really were their hair colors and styles, otherwise they all wore the same tan uniforms. Knowing his sight wouldn't be enough, he reached out with his nose, sniffing the air, noting the smells of students, but none were Masters or Servants, though it seemed to be early for people to be at the school.

The scents he picked out weren't specifically physical, they were the natural odor that emanated from the particular. For instance, Kirei smelled of Candle Wax and Paper, natural for his role as Church overseer. The bartender had smelled of flowers and alcohol, appropriate for his hobby for gardening and his hob as a bartender. Each scent was specific to who it came from, as a result, he could tell who it was just by the smell of them.

A scent caught in Lancer's nose, something akin to ashes and the metallic scent of liquid gold. A smirk formed on his lips, looked like the Master of Saber went to this school, he had looked young, and had worn the uniform the other kids did, so it only made sense.

Lingering under his scent was the smell of velvet and mahogany, more subtle than Saber's Master, but it was the unmistakable scent of Archer's Master, the more powerful of two Magi. So, those two must have formed a permanent alliance of sorts, seeing as they hadn't killed each other yet. And what was Lancer's luck that two Masters went to the same school, keeping an eye on them would be a lot easier at least.

Lancer tried to get a scent of their Servants, but odds were they were in Spirit Form, so they'd be nearly impossible to detect unless he got close, and then his cover would be blown. Even at full strength, he wouldn't be able to take on both Servants at once, it would only shorten his participation in this war.

Lancer then tried to decipher the smell of Caster, even if she were subtle, he'd be able to get a faint scent. He never ignored a familiar fragrance when it came his way. However, odds were favorable to her being in Spirit Form, so there went that...If her Master showed up though...

Suddenly a serpentine smell invaded Lancer's nostrils, potent and powerful. It could only be from a Servant, not nearly strong enough to be Saber, Archer, let alone Caster, but he could tell this Heroic Spirit wouldn't be a pushover either. Lancer grinned as he made to follow the trail, itching for a good fight.

The trail led deeper into the woods, smart, no one would be able to see a prospective battle, especially in the middle of the day, and if the forest was particularly thick, Lancer's advantage in reach and speed would be for naught. The Spearman knew for a fact that this wasn't a chance of fortune, a Servant had intentionally materialized and revealed their presence to him, likely to draw him away from their Master. Maybe their Master had their scent masked somehow, and if left there he would have eventually found them. Regardless, he was looking forward to a good outing.

The trail ended at a clearing in the midst of the woods, on neutral ground that'd be hard to reach for either Master or Servant. Lancer stayed perched up on a branch, scanning the clearing for the Servant, they were so close that he couldn't solidly track them anymore. The scent was almost an overwhelming fragrance of torches, incense, and snakes...a creature Lancer had never smelt in his own lifetime, but thanks to the Grail he now knew of what they looked and smelt like now.

Lancer summoned his spear to his outstretched hand, scanning the woods and undergrowth for signs of life. There was nothing. A trap was ready to spring, and Lancer knew he was knee-deep into it, a sense of suspense and adrenaline all too alien to his veins since his life as a Hero.

The rattle of chains was the only warning Lancer got as a spike was thrown towards him. He lunged off the branch, grabbing hold a tree adjacent hanging onto a limb with his right arm, the same foot tensed on it's trunk in case he needed to lunge again.

He scanned the surrounding forest for the culprit, knowing the trap had been sprung. The scent in his nose was extremely potent as if it were coming closer like from... Lancer looked up, twin spikes attached to chains sped towards him. He leapt from the tree, catching one of the chain lengths and wrapping it around his spear's blade. He pulled down, hard, and a flash of violet and black shot towards the ground, landing gracefully on the ground in a crouch.

Lancer flipped as he tumbled through the air, also landing in a crouch, eyes focused forward. The figure before him was most definitely a Servant, not only in presence, but also appearance. The Servant was a woman, with a curtain of light violet hair that ran to her heels, she was also tall, probably matching him in height. She wore very simple black garb that offered extreme freedom in mobility, but lacked any armor aside from the light armor on her forearms, and that looked to be more for deflection than outright defense. Most peculiar was the mask she wore that obscured her eyes, looking like it would completely impair her vision, and yet she faced Lancer as if she were looking at him.

"You've got quite a nose on you." She stated.

Lancer chuckled, "And you've got a cute little mask there." Oh how he loved to banter.

The other Servant said nothing, in fact she didn't even react.

"You are Cù Chulainn of the Lancer class, are you not?" She asked. Lancer bit back a curse, did everyone know? Well, it was likely, he had used his Noble Phantasm the other night, no doubt everyone was watching the joint battle against Berserker.

"Well, since everybody already knows, yes," He said, giving an exaggerated bow. "Now, what's your class?" Lancer asked, rising and squaring his shoulders.

The other Servant stood there, her expression blank. Her posture was neutral, but Lancer could tell she was tensing her muscles.

"Not much of a talker, huh?" Lancer asked, tightening his grip on his spear. "That's fine, let your skills do the talking!"

The Hound of Culann lunged forth, spear raised and aimed towards the other Servant. In an instant, the black and purple figure vanished, leaving Lancer and his spear striking at nothing.

He twisted in mid air, raising the shaft of his spear more than fast enough to block the spike and chain that wrapped around his weapon. He smirked, pulling again to try and reign the Servant in, however, it wasn't going to work this time.

The female Servant pulled on the chain, propelling herself towards Lancer, a sandaled foot meeting his face and sending him spinning. He hit the ground, then twisted back to his feet, taking only a second to recover, then lunged again, the cursed spear slashing her across the midsection. Lancer felt himself smirk in smug satisfaction, at least until the other Servant wrapped the chain around his neck as she sped past him.

Lancer landed flat on his back, his neck being crushed by the other Servant's chain. The masked woman smiled, raising her other spike and stabbing downwards. Lancer caught it with his free hand, a look of surprise crossing her face, then, him holding her fist, pushed back, making her hit herself in the face.

Slightly dazed, the Servant's grip on the chain weakened, and Lancer twisted his form, striking her with his boot and rolling away, the chain falling from his neck. He took up the Gae Bolg and charged again, she swerved to the side and stabbed with her spikes. Both stuck into the light armor on his torso, one piercing to give a superficial wound, other caught between the plate and tunic. Before he could push his advantage, the Woman withdrew, pulling on the chain attached to both spikes and pulling him to her.

Lancer was violently pulled towards the woman, a strong kick to his chest, not only creating distance but also dislodging her spikes in the process. The spearman hit the ground and rolled into a crouch, grimacing at how close this battle had been so far.

The female Servant stood up straight, flashing Lancer a coy smile, then in a flash of prana, began to flee the clearing. Lancer grinned, his muscles swelling at the thought of a prospective hunt.

 _The hunt is on missy._

Lancer sped after the fleeing Servant, jumping from tree limb to tree limb in pursuit. To her credit, she was fast, and extremely agile, gracefully jumping from tree, but he was the Hound of Culann, and he didn't let his prey escape him. The distance was closing fast, enough for him to be able to use his spear.

He leaped from a trunk, spear poised to strike, however, she seemed to have sensed his proximity, throwing one of her spikes. As it neared his face, Lancer was forced to dodge, landing on the ground then leaping up again in pursuit. She evidently had much sharper senses than he gave her credit for, she moved like she could see...no not see, as if she could accurately make out everything around her without the limiting use of sight. That meant any surprise attacks wouldn't work, not conventional in any case.

In the back of his mind, Lancer considered using his Noble Phantasm, if he threw it, she might be able to dodge it, but it'd give him enough of an edge to catch up and maybe corner her. He threw away the thought, if he missed he'd be without a weapon, and this Servant would kill him before he found it. What she lacked in combative skill, she made up for in speed and agility, almost disproportionately so.

Lancer closed in again, this time however, he wasn't going to play the game of Cat and Mouse any longer. Instead of attempting to skewer her, he moved in front of her, stopping her path forward, and slashing the branch she was on. Lancer watched as she rolled to the ground, seemed to gaze up and waited.

"Have ya got the running out of your system yet?" Lancer called from the tree limb he stood upon.

The other Servant seemed to give a short snort. "I was intending to play nice and let you fight another day, now however you've forced me to face you, so for pity's sake, I'll oblige." She called, banter, one of the things Lancer loved in this life and the last.

"There she is," Lancer said with a wolfish smirk. "I love a woman with a spine."

"A shame I'll be forced to remove yours." She called, his grin only grew.

"Promises are only good if they're made," He called back, resting his spear on his shoulder. "Though I have to wonder..."

"Wonder what, dog?"

Lancer grimaced at the jab, but kept going. "What class of Servant you are, I thought initially that you were Assassin class, but if you were, I should be dead, besides your more than suited for combat than your typical Assassin," he sniffed the air, still that burning incense and serpentine stench. "Plus, you don't have the aura to be an Assassin, you've got a lot more potent presence, and I have to wonder what that is."

Lancer mentally checked off Saber, Archer and Berserker from the list, she wasn't nearly powerful enough to be any of them anyways. Assassin was already ruled out, and there was already a Caster Servant, besides, she was too combat orientated to be one. Which only left...

"Rider." Lancer said aloud, the Servant stiffened. He began to chuckle.

"What's so funny, Lancer?" Rider asked spitefully.

"Nothing," Lancer hefted his spear from his shoulder. "Just didn't figure I was fighting a Rider class servant, guess the lack of stead was the issue, but I can only guess that it's your Noble Phantasm."

Rider said nothing, instead facing him silently from her position as if pondering attacking or retreating.

"You won't call off this battle then?" She asked, Lancer grinned helplessly.

"Usually I would, but with three battles unfinished, I want to end one with a definite victory," he said, leaping from the branch and landing on the ground ten meters from her. "It ain't personal lass, it's a matter of pride."

"Pride is a waste, especially if one only fights for survival." She said hollowly, Lancer frowned.

"Maybe for some, but all I've known is how to fight, pride is as inborn to me as breathing," Lancer lowered his spear and prepared for another battle. "But don't worry, I'm not going to make you suffer, I have some decency in that respect."

Rider did not respond, instead crouching with her spikes held in a reverse-grip, chains rattling as she breathed easily. Lancer focused his gaze on the other Servant, admiring how steadily calm she was, this wasn't going to be a quickly decided battle, this was going to be a hard won duel. If he was honest with himself, Lancer preferred it that way.

The two Servants stared each other down, neither moving as the wind rustled the trees, making them sway and move above them. Lancer was resisting the urge to shiver in anticipation, a learned skill that took awhile for him to grasp, but he had long sense mastered the skill. All thoughts of his Master's orders had left his mind, instead he was only thinking of the battle before him, emptying his head of all the unnecessary distractions.

A stray leaf fell from the bare trees, flowing down gently and gracefully as the breeze carried it down. The orange leaf fell between the two combatants, it's grace at odds with the thick and tense air regarding the pause between the two Servants. The leaf landed between them.

Lancer charged.

Rider lunged.

He barely avoided the first strike, Rider dodging his thrust, twisting in mid-air to strike at his face. Lancer swerved his body, spinning his spear into her side, the shaft catching her midsection and flinging her a few meters away. He put his feet under him, and pushed off the ground charging forth towards Rider, keeping his spear closer this time, gripping it just under the blade, he made for a stab at the masked-Servant. She deflected the blade of the Gae Bolg and spun, stabbing a spike through Lancer's shoulder, the other spike poised to strike his spine.

Lancer kicked at Rider with his leg, striking her in the midsection, pushing her back, and taking her spike with her. He rolled his shoulder, the wound healing instantly.

He turned to see Rider crouched against a tree-trunk, the charging of mana present in the air. Lancer pulled his spear in front of him, just as the other Servant pounced, streaking blue energy behind her. He was blown back by the sheer force behind her strike, forced to his knee before she disengaged.

She had disappeared, but the charge of mana, and smell of incense and serpents remained. Lancer knew that she was going to attack again, and depending on the speed of his response, he may end getting killed here.

He caught the movement of something dark to his left, and raised his spear just in time to block Rider's strike, instead of remaining near, she launched off the ground and placed herself on a tree trunk, pushing off of it and back towards Lancer at full speed. He dodged easily, watching her with crimson eyes.

Rider disappeared among the trees, Lancer growled, she was fighting purely with hit-and-run attacks. It made plenty of sense, she couldn't match him in one-on-one combat, so evasion was her only choice, and despite his speed, Lancer knew that eventually, she might be able to get a killing strike.

The scent of incense became extremely potent form behind him, Lancer turned, swinging his spear horizontally. Sure enough, Rider was there, however she seemed to have anticipated his strike, blocking the shaft of the spear with her bracers, a spike held in reverse-grip going for his throat. Lancer swerved back avoid the blow, however the edge if the spike cut his cheek shallowly.

Lancer kicked out with his boot, catching Rider in the midsection and sending her back. She spun in mid-air and landed on her hand, flipping back to her feet. The two opponents stared each other down, both only slightly battered and still fresh.

Lancer dropped his defensive posture, resting his spear on his shoulder in nonchalance. Rider hesitantly lowered her spikes to her sides.

"Even if you're not going at full strength, you're a hell of a fighter there, Rider." He complimented.

"You are a competent fighter in your own right, " She replied, her voice and tone remaining neutral, then she titled her head. "How did you know I was not fighting at full-strength?"

"You have a large amount of Mana built-up, but you're not using it," He smirked. "You're not fighting to kill me, you're testing me, seeing what I'm made of."

Rider let a small smirk form on her face. "You're a lot smarter than I gave you credit for." She said.

Lancer chuckled. "I'll take that as a compliment, lass." Hefting up his spear.

"So, what do you say we-?" Lancer began, but then a voice in his head sounded.

 _"Lancer, disengage."_ Kotomine's deep drawl sounded in his head.

Damn it.

"Could you wait? I'd rather leave the battlefield with blood on my spear." Lancer answered back mentally, gripping his spear tightly in growing anger.

" _I gave you an order._ "

"Yeah, and I can end this right here and now!" Lancer shot across the bond with his Master.

" _You've faced four enemy Servants thus far, and yet they all still live. Even Caster, when you assured me that she was taken care of_ ," Kirei drawled, impatience in his voice. " _Will I be forced to use a Command Seal?"_

Lancer growled aloud, Rider was unmoved, warily awaiting Lancer's next move.

"You're gonna have to use one of those Command Seals, I ain't running from another fight." Lancer mentally lashed. He swore he heard the faint chuckle of Kotomine across the bond.

" _Very well, by the power of my Command Seal, withdraw and return, Lancer._ " Instantly, Lancer felt the overbearing power of the command magic envelop him, forcing him to withdraw from the battle and return.

He smiled ruefully at the other Servant.

"Sorry, looks like we'll have to cut this short." He said, shouldering his spear.

"What do you mean?" Rider asked.

"Master is calling me home, so it looks like you'll have to find another playmate," he smirked. "It's been fun Rider, see ya around."

Lancer walked away, dispersing into Spirit Form as he did, sensing Rider doing the same and heading in the opposite direction. To the Irish hero, it felt like a mockery to simply be used as a bloodhound, sniffing out enemy Servants and Masters, testing their skills, then being forced to retreat. It was no way to fight, no way a Hero should fight. And yet, here he was.

Lancer looked forward to visiting the bar tonight, it would give him enough peace of mind to not feel like a damned dog.

* * *

Shirou opened the door to his home, Rin following close behind as he took his shoes off. The day had been...interesting. Trying to get used to the fact school was still an issue when there was a war going on, and Shirou was fighting in said war. And yet, everyone was still at school without much care for the world besides exams.

Going to school with Rin had caused some interesting interactions, with Issei nearly having a heart attack now that she had "bewitched" Shirou, though to be fair, it wasn't outside the realm of her ability. It had taken about ten minutes to explain the situation to Issei, who eventually calmed down and went back to his usual composed self. Aside from him, most of the school was under the impression that Shirou and Rin were now an item, much to both's irritation and embarrassment, and having to explain the scenario about twenty times at least that led Shirou and Rin walking to school together, all in all, both were tired and a bit annoyed.

Aside from that, the day had been rather uneventful, without anyone trying to kill him for the second day in a row. He and Rin had talked briefly at lunch concerning their tactics, but overall, nothing had changed from previous conversations. It had been a strangely normal day since the last three had been anything but.

"Shirou, you've returned." He looked up to see Saber in the hallway, voice and posture neutral.

"Hey, Saber." He responded, dropping his bag and making his way into the kitchen.

"Are you hungry, Tohsaka?" He asked the girl behind him. A growling stomach and flushed face answered him. "I'll take that as a yes."

As Shirou set up dinner, he listened in on Rin and Saber's conversation from the dinner table.

"Was there anything worth note at the school today, Rin?" Saber asked as she took a small sip of tea.

"Not really," Rin shrugged, filling her cup and taking another sip. "Everything seemed pretty quiet and almost normal...though now that I think about it..."

"What is it?" Saber asked.

"Early in the morning, around the time we got to school I felt two spikes of mana, they weren't exactly close, so it was only a small feeling. I wrote it off as lingering energy from the first night's battle, but perhaps it was more than that." She mused, chin in hand.

"Do you think it was from Servants?" Saber asked.

"It's more than likely, and it's proximity to the school is definitely concerning, it might be a coincidence, but odds are that it's more than that." Rin evaluated, weighing the options in her head.

"Still, I haven't detected the presence of a Master at our school besides the two of us, so the Servants may have just been investigating and bumped into each other." She dismissed, taking another sip of tea.

Shirou frowned at Rin's nonchalance, but said nothing, if she hadn't felt threatened, then they should be fine right?

Saber on the other hand didn't look quite so appeased, her frown was pronounced, and her brows furrowed. "Rin, how much longer until I may be transferred to your and Shirou's school?"

"No more than a few days, I'd figure the day after tomorrow." Rin said offhandedly. Saber frowned.

"No sooner?" She asked.

"No, unfortunately. I've sped up the process as much as I can, but that's the best I can do for the time being. There is only so much pull I can do without trying possess someone, and let me tell you, that is a trickier type of magic." Rin explained, setting her tea down as dinner was served.

They ate quietly that night, Saber silently eating more than her fill, Rin trying to eat quickly but saving face through her mannered style of eating, and Shirou who seemed to be the only one not in a rush. Frowning, he finished his serving of rice, refilling Saber's and proceeded to set his dishes in the kitchen. Rin had already finished and stood in the hall, putting on her red coat.

"So, how exactly are patrols going to work out?" Shirou asked, Rin regarded him and shrugged.

"Basically we'll be scouting out town for any possible locations of Masters and their Servants. If we are in serious danger, or require assistance, this will warn you," she pulled out a large black jewel and set it in Shirou's palm. It was smooth, but very heavy, a large amount of mana within it. "If that thing lights up, it means I'm calling for help, and if you don't happen to be in the room, you'll feel it pretty easily."

"Okay," Shirou replied, slipping the gem into his pocket. "What constitutes as an emergency?"

"If we're set upon by a Servant like Caster or Berserker. Even if Saber's not in best form, she'll be more than a match for Caster with her Magical Resistance, plus she's been able to hold off Berserker for awhile, so between her and Archer, we should be fine." Rin said, no real anxiety in her voice. Odds were, she knew where both were and wouldn't be likely to cross them tonight.

"Do you know any place where those two are?" Shirou asked.

"I have a few hunches, there's a bounded field outside of town, that's likely the Einzbern Manor, and probably where Berserker is, as for Caster, there's plenty of places he could be, probably held up near one of the magical lay lines around town. But if he sense us, he can temporarily mask his presence."

"Okay, anywhere else?"

"Not as of yet, which is why we're heading out. Make sure you leave something out for me later." Without further ado, Rin walked straight through the door to where Archer stood, shooting a cold glare towards Shirou. Again, the pickling sensation overwhelmed him, but it was gone as Archer and Rin departed.

With nothing else to do that night, Shirou found himself in his shed, finding the door still busted from the night of Saber's summoning, with all that had happened in the last few days, he'd forgotten about the disrepair of his shed. In a few minutes he had repaired the door, running his finger across the door's surface and holding the shards in place as it rebuilt itself, remembering it's old form. With that done, he surveyed the inside of the shed, his dad's Contender still lay on the floor on top of it's case. Inside the case were about forty or so of the large rounds left, and he had to wonder if he'd ever use them all.

Shirou held no illusions, his father had used this gun before, and the bullets had a magic property he couldn't decipher. Why Kiritsugu had these, Shirou couldn't fathom, he only remembered the night his father showed the weapon to him.

 _It was a chilly night, being the dead of winter, and young Shirou tightened the robe around himself as he followed his father into the shed. It might've occurred to him that he had never seen the inside of the shed since he had been adopted by Kiritsugu, but he hadn't paid attention to it all that much, he was a kid after all._

 _The shed itself was dusty from disuse, but there was something else as well. Shirou hadn't known it at the time, but there was a bittersweet melancholy here, he'd been too absorbed to notice his father's wince of pain. Or to even see the slight limp that has formed in his leg._

 _"Shirou." He said, his voice was soft and warm. He pulled a chest from a solitary wooden cabinet, intrigued, Shirou approached._

 _Kiritsugu struggled to his knees, holding the case with delicate and shaky hands._

 _"Open it." He order softly, Shirou did as he was told and opened the case, revealing a long-barreled gun that looked huge to the boy. Not susceptible to the urging of curiosity, he stared blankly at the gun before his eyes._

 _"What is it?" He asked, his golden eyes wide in child wonder._

 _"It's a Gun, a Contender," His father replied gently as he shut the case again and put the gun away. "If something happens to me, you'll be able to defend yourself, at the very least." Kiritsugu rose to his full height weakly, leaving the shed as he'd entered, Shirou following behind him._

 _Shirou was silent for awhile, following his father diligently until they came to rest on the porch. He drank a cup of juice, while Kiritsugu had nothing, instead his gaze was focused on the moon in a nostalgic ease._

 _"Dad?" Shirou asked._

 _"Yes?"_

 _"Why'd you show me your gun?"_

 _Kiritsugu sighed tiredly, as if expecting the question. "Shirou, eventually, I'm not going to be around. When that time comes, you may have to be prepared to protect yourself should the need come."_

 _The boy frowned. "But, Dad, why would anyone come after me?"_

 _"Before I found you Shirou, I was not a well-loved man by all. No, I had more enemies than friends, and before long, they'll start hunting me for revenge." Kiritsugu said, he had a soft smile, one that spoke strangely of regret and nostalgia all at once._

 _"Why? What did you do?"_

 _"I tried to be a hero," Kiritsugu responded, closing his eyes as if in memory. "I wanted to be a hero since I was young, around your age actually. But I knew that I couldn't save everyone if I was to be a hero, so I tried to save as many as I could. But I failed."_

 _"How?" Shirou asked, transfixed by his father's story._

 _Kiritsugu opened his eyes and smiled down at Shirou, his dark eyes reflecting the moon beams. "As it turns out, my goal was only possible through a miracle, but that miracle was a lie. And in the end, it cost me everyone I held dear," tears brimmed at the man's dark eyes. "The thing about being a hero, is that you can't save everyone, and as long as you walk that path, the people closest to you are the surest to suffer."_

 _"Why?" Shirou asked._

 _"If you want to be a force of justice and heroism, you're going to make enemies. A hero can only be a hero if he or she has a great evil to face. Otherwise, a hero isn't anyone more than a warmonger. Hoping for things to go wrong so they can act, as it is though, there is never not a need for a hero, someone somewhere needs one at any given time"_

 _Shirou was silent for awhile contemplating his father's words. Why did he give up? How come he couldn't save everyone? As long as their ideals are strong and their will unbreakable, a hero could do anything! What stopped his father?_

 _"Is that why you stopped?" Shirou asked, his father looking at him in question. "Because you couldn't save everyone?"_

 _Kiritsugu thought for a few minutes before responding. "No, I knew from day one that I couldn't save everyone. I stopped being a hero when I lost the people who I cared about. Without anyone to fight for, Shirou, the path of a hero is bitter and lonely. Without someone, something to fight for, you will eventually become the very thing you sought to destroy." As he said it, Shirou's father seemed to hunch over, the lines on his face that had begun to show only increased, he looked older than his age would suggest._

 _Shirou frowned, unsettled by Kiritsugu's depression, he was determined to cheer his father up. Even if his dream of being a hero was done it didn't mean the dream was wasted._

 _"Don't worry about a thing Dad!" The young boy said, startling his father with his sudden jovial tone._

 _"Shirou?"_

 _"You're old now, and you've stopped, but I'm still young, I can take your dream of being a hero and accomplish it, Dad! I can become the hero you always wanted to be." The young boy said, smiling broadly at his declaration._

 _Kiritsugu's face was blank for a moment, before it broke into a relieved smile. "That's a relief son," he said softly, closing his eyes and sighing as one would going to bed after a long day. "I feel better..." He said, subtly slouching in place._

 _Shirou stared at the prone figure of his father for several moments, initially pleased with himself for making him smile, the boy felt his heart seize. Something felt wrong...and even at eleven, Shirou could sense it._

 _He reached out with a cautious hand._

 _"Dad?"_

 _He shook Kiritsugu's arm gently. No response._

 _"Old man?" He asked again, shaking with more urgency. Still his father did not move._

 _"Dad!" He yelled._

 _Nothing._

 _Fearing the worse, Shirou put his hand over Kiritsugu's chest, feeling for a heartbeat._

 _There was none._

 _"DAD!" Shirou cried, frantically shaking his father's frame, hoping against all hope that he'd wake up and smile at him._

 _But Emiya Kiritsugu did not stir._

 _Shirou wailed._

Opening his eyes, Shirou felt the coolness on his cheeks that spoke of fresh tears. By habit, he wiped his eyes with his shirt sleeve, but that didn't take away the pain.

Five years. It had been five years since Kiritsugu's passing, and Shirou still cried when that particular memory played in his dreams. It only reminded him of the increasingly familiar feeling of helplessness, felt more than it should have.

Perhaps his father's death shouldn't have affected him as much as the Fuyuki Fire continued to, but it did. Where the fire created Shirou a long survivor of the flames, watching as hundreds of others perished that night. He had given up that day, walking through the hellish landscape, only to fall, knowing living couldn't be worth anything. That he should have died with the others.

Then Kiritsugu had come, and suddenly he had a purpose. It wasn't an immediate acknowledgement of it no, but it had come. The fact that Shirou had lost his father so suddenly, and without any warning, it shook him. The one man who had saved him, passed away so quietly, and yet so peacefully.

Kiritsugu wasn't Shirou true father, no, but he had taken him as his own child and raised him with all the love and adoration that a parent should have. The pain of losing him was deeper and sharper than that of the Fire, but the Fire was on a different spectrum of pain. All consuming as opposed to a sharp stab to his heart.

Fresh tears brimmed at his eyelids, and he blinked them away. Sitting up in the shed. Whether he had lost consciousness due to the memory or had simply curled into a ball, he didn't know, but it didn't matter now. He had to train.

Making swords with reinforcement hadn't initially been Shirou's goal when he trained himself. In fact, it had been an accident, he had held a wooden beam and thought it looked like a sword. So, naturally he has reinforced it's shape into a blade, that had been when Kiritsugu was still alive, and he had drilled Shirou several times to improve on the technique. By now, it was a natural part of his training to make a sword or blade of some sort, for some reason, he had a much easier time in his training after he'd made a blade.

Shirou picked up a rock, it was one of the harder things to reinforce, it was already hard and sturdy, but also subject to become too brittle. Inhaling once, he closed his eyes and focused inward.

" _Trace on_."

Instantly the green of his circuits illuminated, and flowed into the rock. Shirou focused his energy into the structure of the stone, keeping the strength, but lessening the brittle nature of it. If he was working with metal, this process of strengthening would have been much more simple than it currently was, the stone was not something he was as used to working with. Sure, it was strong, but it wasn't refined.

Opening his eyes as he switched his circuits off, Shirou stared at the rock in front of him, noting it's improved weight and sturdiness. While he didn't have any use for a hardened rock, he was just glad it went off without a hitch this time.

"Shirou?"

He turned to see Saber standing in the doorway, illuminated by the moonlight. Vividly, Shirou was reminded on the night of her summoning, the beautiful warrior outlined in the pure moonlight. He shook his head clear of the thoughts and focused on the woman in front of him.

"Hey, Saber," He said with a smile, hoping his face wasn't flushed. "What're you doing out here?"

"I was concerned when you didn't return from the shed, and I felt the use of magic." She responded in answer.

"Oh, how long have I been out?" He asked.

"No more than two hours." She replied, casting a glance at the magic circle on the floor that had summoned her forth.

"Huh, must've actually fallen asleep I guess," Shirou said as he stood up, dusting off his pants. "Sorry about that."

"Pay it no mind, although I must ask why you would fall asleep in your shed."

Shirou scratched the back of his neck sheepishly. "I kinda pass out in here sometimes it...it reminds me of my dad." He said looking down.

"I see," Saber said neutrally, staying rooted at her spot at the door. "What...what was he like? Your father?"

"My dad was one of a kind, he always knew how to make anything fun or exciting, always had a good joke ready too," Shirou said fondly, a soft smile marking his face. "He just...knew how to be a good father, and loved every minute of it. I mean, yeah, he was gone a lot on his business trips, but he was doing his best, and his best was more than enough."

Though Shirou was recalling the memory of his father fondly, Saber held a slight frown on her face. Had Kiritsugu Emiya truly changed so much?

"I miss him." Shirou whispered quietly, Saber dropped her frown and moved forward and kneeled next to him.

"I understand," Saber said with a quiet edge to her voice. "My own father was a good and courageous man, he made sure I learned all I needed to before he passed."

Shirou pondered her words, once again drawing blank as Saber's identity as a Heroic Spirit. He wasn't worried at this point, more curious than anything.

"Did you have a family, Saber?" Shirou asked, taking care to ask with tact and not sound demanding.

Saber regarded both the question and Shirou silently, for several moments she didn't say anything.

"Sorry I asked-" He began, but she had already began to speak.

"Yes, of a kind." Her voice was low, as if the memory hurt, but Shirou caught the glimpse of a melancholy smile.

"Of a kind?"

Saber's smile turned wistful. "Yes, they weren't related to me by blood, but they were as brothers to me."

"What were they like? If you don't mind me asking."

"They..." She began, hesitant to continue. "They were the finest and most valiant men who had ever lived, all put their honor and duty before themselves," She smiled softly. "And I couldn't have been more honored to fight beside them."

"Fought beside them, huh?" Shirou mused, "Were you part of an army, or something else?"

"An army." She said shortly, elaborating no further.

Shirou stared at her, wondering if she would continue, but he knew internally that she wouldn't. As she had said before, the less Shirou knew the better, in the event of him getting captured, there was no telling what advantage any adversary could gain through magecraft on his mind.

Still, Shirou couldn't help but wonder who Saber was. Her armor wasn't easy to discern the origin of through a glance. While undoubtably European, it seemed to come from an age that hadn't defined the country, or even the year of design, it came from somewhere else altogether. Which of course made the concept of figuring out her identity impossible, save for her telling him herself.

"Is this where you practice Magecraft, Shirou?" Saber asked suddenly.

"I'm sorry?"

Saber had turned her gaze toward his pile of scraps, from which he had grabbed the rock before, and which held a collection of materials that he practiced with to find the exact extent of his reinforcement abilities.

"Is this your workshop?"

"Oh, it's what I've made of one, I guess," Shirou said sheepishly. "I'm not exactly a formal Magus, so this probably doesn't even count as a workshop."

"Even so, you practice Magecraft here do you not?"

"I have to admit, you've got me there. In that case, yeah, this is where I practice my magic skills."

Saber nodded, leaning forward slightly as she inspected the pile of materials. "In what fashion do your magical abilities function in, Shirou?"

Without pause Shirou picked up a rusted metal pipe, holding it at the center of it's length. "I'm not really good at anything except Reinforcement and Projection honestly, I mean, I learned a few of the basic things, but Dad had me focus more on those two skills in particular. I guess they were the only things I excelled in."

Saber considered this, listening but saying nothing.

"For Reinforcement, I essentially trace the base components of a material, and then I flow prana through it to make it stronger. But, I also alter the shape to my liking, making it turn out whatever I want it to." Shirou continued, already considering how he'd reinforce the pipe.

The first thing he'd have to do would be trace the components of the original metal of the pipe, and not the rusted parts, then use the original materials to reinforce and alter the rusted parts. The second part was concerning what shape he wanted it to take. He considered making it a sword, but there wasn't enough metal to make it into a broad sword or even a short sword, but maybe he could make another dagger or knife. Not a Jambiya this time, maybe an American Bowie knife, or even a Roman Pugio...

Shirou turned, suddenly seeing that Saber was leaning forward intently...invading his personal space. She was close enough for him to feel the warmth her skin radiated, and the breath she exhaled softly from her nose.

"Would you care to demonstrate, Shirou?" She asked, while her expression and tone were neutral, Shirou couldn't help but stare into her green eyes that seemed to plead in curiosity. Maybe it was just his imagination, but he was determined not to disappoint her.

Ignoring the heat flushing his cheeks and the nervous twitches that took over his limbs, Shirou returned his focus to the pipe.

" _Trace On_." Energy ignited in his limbs, his mind focusing on the object in his hand. Altering it's internal structure to his liking, stronger, strudier in the shape of a sword...What was that smell? Wild flowers? Dew? Where did it come from? Was something growing or was it-? Saber!

Shirou opened his eyes and gasped as he lost concentration, the pipe in his hand had the beginning shape of a sword, but was only partially complete, looking more pipe than weapon. Saber frowned looking upon it, not in assessment, but in disappointment, but not in Shirou...

"If I am a distraction Shirou, allow me to-" She began, but he grabbed her wrist gently.

"Don't go anywhere, I've got this." He said, putting on a small smile. Saber's frown disappeared, and she sat down again, slightly further from Shirou.

He turned to the half-finished pipe and focused inward again. Shirou's Magic Circuits took life, this time, he put all his effort into the pipe, and nothing else. The materials shifted into the shape of a dagger. In a few seconds, the shape was matched, and he began to rework the metal of blade, the crossguard, and the hilt. He made the blade sharper, and sturdy, the crossguard more elegant, and the hilt slimmer for a firmer and more comfortable grip.

With the end in sight, Shirou made the blade itself sharper, separated the guard, hilt and blade into their own specific pieces as opposed to a single whole. As he turned off his circuits, he opened his eyes to see the result of his efforts, a curved Kukuri knife with a heavy blade with a sharp angle to the guard. It was a rather hard object for him to form, but the result was satisfactory.

He turned to see Saber staring in fascination at the blade, astounded at the fact that the blade had been a pipe a few moments before.

She reached her hand out for it, "May I?" She asked, wordlessly, Shirou handed her the weapon. Saber held the curved blade in her hand, weighing it and testing the grip in her slim hand, nodding in approval as she made a downward swing with it.

"Very impressive, Shirou," She said, handing the knife back to it's forger. "The balance and weight feels correct and proportional, a truly fine blade." She commended.

"Really?" Shirou asked, fighting against the blush creeping to his face.

"Yes, were you in my own time, you would have been highly sought after for your skills. You could outfit an entire army within a fortnight." She said with utter sincerity, Shirou's blush only grew, not at her statement, but the smile she now wore.

"Heh, I guess a third rate Magus like me can have uses too huh?" Shirou tried to joke.

"You shouldn't doubt yourself so readily, Shirou," Saber said, a strange expression on her face. "Take pride in your skills and find meaning in them, fate has a strange way of playing out, you may find your 'uses' can benefit more than yourself, they are your skills, yes, but you are the one who chooses how to use them."

Shirou just stared at her, not quite sure what to say. Luckily he didn't have to as Saber offered him her hand.

"Come, let us retire for the night." She said with a soft smile. Ignoring the tightening in his tummy, Shirou smiled back and took Saber's hand.

 **Author's Note- Okay, another chapter out and what is this? Original Material? How could this be?**

 **I don't have much to say about this chapter, only that I wanted a scene with Lancer dealing with Kotomine and having a duel with Rider, I wanted to give him some new material and some development in that regard. Granted I can't say he'll be in the next few chapters due to Rider's arc coming, but he'll back, not to worry.**

 **I also wanted to develop a little bit on Sakura and her relationship with Rin, I have read and heard that Sakuka hates Rin due to Heaven's Feel canon, but for the purposes of this fic, I'm not going that route. I believe while Sakura has a resentment towards Rin for never coming to save her, she also in some way understands that Rin might not even know, and doesn't want to get her involved. Still, she loves her Sister, but is intimidated by her in many regards. So that's where that comes from. Also wanted to touch on her crush on Shirou that in this fic shall be** **unrequited. I apologize to any ShirouxSakura shippers, but I really am not going for that. I do not like Plot device love interests.**

 **Finally, I'll have chapter Seven out next week hopefully, just finished writing it and it is a lovely hot-mess so editing time! But as of now I am not longer ahead in terms of chapters to post so updates are probably going to be much slower from here on end, mixed with the fact that I have to go back and rewatch and reread some Fate stuff so I can get a feel on how the next couple of Chapters work out.**

 **(Final note I swear)**

 **If anyone has any suggestions on how Sakura uses Magecraft in a battle please let me know. I am planning on having her have a battle later in the story and would like any input. I was going to give her similar abilities to Kariya from Fate Zero, but I thought that'd be lazy, and after reading through her abilities, I've found very little outside of Dark Sakura abilities. So any suggestions I would love to hear.**

 **As always, review or pm for thoughts or questions!**

 **Till next time,**

 **ArgoGladius**


	7. The Rider and the Idealist

Fate/Raining Blades Chapter VII

One step past the school ground property and Shirou felt a sharp stabbing and pulling sensation in his chest. Painful and shocking as it was draining. It was as if a syringe had been stabbed into his heart, and the physician was intentionally extracting his organs through the head of the needle.

Shirou hunched over, taking deep breaths to alleviate the strangling pressure on his racing heart, after a few minutes he was able to dispel the sensation and stood up, albeit slowly. The pain in his chest was now no more than a dull ache, but the initial shock still wore on him.

He had felt something like this before, it was a bounded field to be sure, but this one was a lot more aggressive than the one around his home. Whereas his would simply be an obstacle to keep people out of his home unless he invited them in, this one was downright carnivorous. It allowed people in, but then would begin to feed on their energy, if Shirou were not a Magus, he probably wouldn't have noticed, but as it was, it was not a pleasant sensation, and that was putting it mildly.

To his right, Rin stood up straight, her posture and expression posed and showing no signs of discomfort. She gave a side glance to Shirou and seemed to acknowledge his predicament.

"Did you feel it?" Shirou asked.

"The bounded field? Yeah, and a pretty nasty one at that. This complicates things."

"How?"

"This is too potent and aggressive to be put up by another Mage, as it is, I can only think a Servant would put up something like this."

Shirou frowned. "What do you mean?"

"It's pretty simple, whereas most bounded fields are made to repel other people and Magi, this lets them in only to drain them of mana. As it is, it isn't activated so the process of breaking down the people within into mana isn't anything more than trivial."

"It's a time bomb." Shirou said lowly.

"Essentially, yes. But you only put up this kind of crap up if you can't supply your own servant. As bad as this may be, it actually means good news for us, this Servant's Master isn't competent enough to supply his own servant." Rin said in simple explanation.

"I guess so," Shirou said, not so sure he was as calm of the situation as Tohsaka. "But what can we do?"

"As I said, it's not activated so we shouldn't worry about it too much, but it is a trap just ready to go off. We'll talk at lunch today, for now, we should head to classes." Rin said in nonchalance.

"On the roof again?"

"Yes."

"Alright, see you then."

With that, Shirou and Rin departed to their respective classrooms, both knowing their real thoughts would be pertaining to the war.

Shirou's thoughts drifted to the morning, nothing had really been out of place or ordinary. Sakura hadn't arrived to make breakfast, but she had called, claiming to not feel well. Shirou thought he would make her some broth when he got home, hopefully that'd help, though it would bring him close to her house.

The only thing that really had struck him was when he and Rin had departed, Saber had seemed very reluctant to let him leave. Reluctant was putting it mildly, she had been almost adamant that he remain at his estate where she could watch over him. It was strange she bad been so persistent.

 _"Shirou, I shall not surrender my stance on this. You will stay home today." She said as an order, moving completely in sync with her authoritative tone. However, Shirou wasn't going to be swayed._

 _"Saber, we've been over this. Servants aren't going to attack during the day, especially not at a school. Besides, Tohsaka will be there and between the two us nothing should happen."_

 _"Rin and Archer both detected the presence of two Servants near your school, Shirou, in broad daylight no less. Even if you two are skilled in any form of combat, neither of you can hope to defeat a servant," The blonde Servant had stepped closer towards her Master, staring straight into his eyes. "Have faith in your servant Shirou and heed her advice."_

 _Shirou had nearly rolled his eyes if not for the green orbs that bore into his amber. They spoke of no room for argument, and nothing he could say would change her mind it seemed. But still._

 _"Look Saber, I trust you, but you're being ridiculous! Tohsaka needs someone to watch her back, and if I'm with her the odds of any danger is decreased. There is safety in numbers, besides, nothing bad will happen, I promise." A look of indignation crossed Saber's face, anger replaced it, but was then covered by a cool mask of stone._

 _"If you refuse to listen to reason, so be it. But if something arises, you will summon me with a command seal." Saber said with a hard edge in her voice._

 _"Saber-"_

 _"Furthermore, you will return home as soon as you are able. No later, understand?"_

 _"Saber-"_

 _"Shirou," a softer tone to her voice sounded, despite her restrained anger, her eyes showed clear concern. "Promise me."_

 _"..."_

 _There was a pause as Shirou shifted his balance from foot to foot, there wasn't anything he needed to do after school, so it should be fine. But still, something ate at Shirou's gut, if this promise was broken at all, he could potentially lose any trust Saber had placed in him, and then he_ really _wouldn't be going anywhere._

 _"Shirou?"_

 _Looking back at the green eyes that stared imploringly at him, Shirou knew he only had one response._

 _"I promise."_

Coming back to the present, Shirou realized class was over and lunch had begun. Without delay he grabbed his lunch and ascended the stairs to the roof. Waiting there was Tohsaka, back against the wall to shield her from the wind, she patted the spot next her. With some reluctance, Shirou took it.

They sat quietly for a few moments, simply eating their lunches, if Shirou were to harbor a guess, he supposed it would be a lengthy conversation. Sure enough, in record time Rin had completed her lunch and now crossed her arms. It was time for a battle plan it seemed.

"Emiya, did you have anything planned for after school?"

Shirou paused as he chewed, aside from a promise to Saber no. "Not really, why?"

"This bounded field is already affecting everyone, even the Teachers are a sluggish today, have you noticed anything?"

Shirou swallowed another mouthful and responded. "Well, I did stop by Issei earlier, he didn't look so good."

Rin nodded. "Probably due to the field, it's draining everyone of their energy."

"Is there anything we can do?" Shirou asked, setting aside his lunch box and warming his hands.

"With a field like this it can't be sustained by the Servant on their own, in all likelihood it has sigils that anchor it and keep it sustained. But odds are, they're going to be a pain in the ass to find."

"Shouldn't we look anyways?"

"Of course we will! If we leave these things unchecked, not only will the Servant be able to activate them, but he'll be able to trap us at a moment's notice!" Rin bit out rather unnecessarily. "It's going to be hell to find these things, but if we can deactivate them we'll be able to buy ourselves time, and who knows? We might be able to draw both the Master and Servant out to investigate."

Shirou nodded in silent agreement. It would be a valuable use of their time in any case, and if they could throw a wrench in the plans of whoever put up the bounded field, he could call it a victory, no one died, and just maybe they'd find who was responsible.

The only problem would be the fact he would be staying hours after school likely doing this. This was a direct violation of the promise he had made to Saber that morning, but this was for the sake of the war and keeping people out of harm's way. Saber would understand, besides, it wasn't completely certain that they would run into the Servant or their Master.

"Sounds good, anything else I should do?"

"Just meet me here after school, we'll wait for everyone to vacate the building before taking down those seals."

Simple enough, without further ado, Shirou and Rin departed as lunch ended. Going to their respective classes without any hinderance.

While a thought of paying attention to the lectures were entertained, the red-haired teen had other thoughts on his mind. In particular a blond woman he had made a promise to and broken in less than six hours.

He had rationalized it at the time, but now Shirou was considering the fact he was knowingly breaking his promise to Saber. She was a Servant and he her Master yes, but she was a person all the same, regardless the time era or the fact she had died. Afterall, Saber wasn't trying to do this to restrict or cage him, she just wanted to make sure he was safe, especially in this case as she couldn't be at the school to protect him as of yet.

Still, if he waited for Saber's approval on everything, why should he participate? She obviously knew what she had to do and he was a half-baked Master playing at war. The least he could do was investigate and make sure the school was safe from any involvement from the war.

His thoughts settled, Shirou focused on the class lesson, if only to occupy his mind and energy.

Systematically, Shirou and Rin deactivated the Barrier's seals, admittedly after a outraged surprise from the latter concerning the former's natural sensitivity to the seals, and thus the most suited to find them. It worked out well, Shirou found them, Rin "threw a wrench in the works". They had only waited an hour afterschool to get to work, now the sun was dipping down below the horizon, blazing everything in gold.

It was after the thirteenth seal was sabotaged that things began to get tense. Nothing had happened, and while Shirou was content to avoid a confrontation of any kind, Rin was not so.

"We've sabotaged thirteen of these damn things, you'd think the Servant or Master would come and check it out." Rin grumbled as she stomped along down the hall, gripping Shirou by the arm in a way to guide her to the next seal.

"They might think it's a trap for all we know, might think we have our Servants with us." Shirou mused aloud, Rin shot him a piercing glare.

"Maybe, but we're screwing with their investment, odds are they'd come to us first. Make sure we don't completely dismantle the bounded field."

"About that, Tohsaka, if they do investigate the disturbance, we're toast." Shirou put out, Rin scoffed.

"Speak for yourself, the Master isn't competent enough to give his own Servant mana, then he'll send his Servant, and odds are, with a field like this, they won't be too hard to handle, besides, Archer isn't too far away, we should be able to-"

Rin was cut off by a loud blood-curdling scream, both her and Shirou turned toward it's origin, it wasn't far. Without thought of the consequence, the red-head followed the sound, drawing the reinforced shinai from his belt. Rin's cries of protest drowned, turning into a frustrated huff as she followed.

Shirou rushed down the hallway, reinforcing his legs to handle the speed he was going without straining them. He held his reinforced weapon to his side, eyes wary of any danger or ambush. He arrived in the courtyard overlooking the forest, all bathed in gold from the late afternoon sun. Shirou looked around, searching for the one who had screamed.

He saw her crumpled on the ground, a first year at the school by her appearance, papers strewn about, immediately he approached her form, checking her pulse. She was alive, but only barely, while she was breathing it was incredibly shallow, her skin was a sickly pale.

"Emiya?" Rin's voice called from inside the building.

"Over here Tohsaka," Shirou called, turning his gaze up, something wasn't sitting right with him. "Hurry!"

In seconds, Rin pushed him aside to study the girl, running a critical eye over the girl's form.

"Is she alright?" Shirou asked, Rin's brow was creased, her focus only on the girl.

"Not at all, she's been sucked dry, there's not an ounce of mana in her body," she checked her wrist, there was a slit in it. "Her blood has been sucked out!"

"What? Why?" Shirou asked, a creeping sensation creeping up his spine.

"There's more than one way to get Mana, Emiya! Blood is pretty basic one," she growled, having no patience for his floundering. She reached into her coat and pulled out a few of her gems, "I can restore her, but you've got to keep quiet." She said, beginning the incantations.

Shirou had already tuned her out at the mention of helping the girl, turning his stare towards the woods. He felt something, it wasn't paranoia or imagination, something was near them. A presence was there, it's aura was around the girl, and was leading into the woods. This wasn't good.

A flash of light caught Shirou's eye, it was metallic and reflecting light, and heading for...

"Tohsaka, look out!"

On instinct, Shirou threw his arm in front of Rin's unprotected form. A sharp piercing pain ran up his forearm, burning and stinging all at once. Blood dripped from the wound, down his fingertips to the ground. For a fleeting second, Shirou thought he saw a dagger-like nail and chain wrapped around his arm, however, once he blinked, it was gone. Was it an illusion? No, something had definitely pierced his arm, but where was it now?

"Emiya..." Rin spoke in frightened awe, completely at odds with the facts before her. Shirou had just saved her. Shirou had saved her by taking the attack meant for her, that would have surely killed her.

"Look after her, Tohsaka, I'm going to see who sent the calling card." Shirou said, standing shakily to his feet.

"Wait, doesn't it hurt?"

"Oh hell yeah, it hurts like you wouldn't believe, but I've had worse. Just keep her safe, Tohsaka." He said, standing straight and running towards the woods, reinforced shinai held in his good hand.

"Emiya!" Rin called, but Shirou didn't listen. If he stayed they'd be sitting ducks, hopefully, by throwing himself at this mystery assailant, he could draw attention away from Tohsaka and the girl.

Foolhardy? Definitely, but if the choice was there, Shirou would give his life if it meant more people could live in the end, in this case, going to face his opponent head on to give Tohsaka time to escape. He just prayed his gamble would work.

Within seconds, the woods surrounded him, he tried to follow the aura from before, a strange sensation of the air being purer and hollow, but also thick with incense, almost like a Temple or Church. While he was in the right place, the atmosphere was so thick with the aura that Shirou couldn't pinpoint it's owner's location. His only saving grace was the light still piercing through the trees, and the adrenaline pounding in his system, allowing him to focus completely on his surroundings.

Shirou narrowed his eyes, tightening his grip on his reinforced weapon, the sharp pain in his arm was more of a pulsing ache now, but the intensity had been lessened to a degree. The pain wasn't much of a problem, just an annoying nag in his mind, for the time he'd shove it aside and focus and fighting whoever had attacked the girl and Rin.

The forest was eerily still, as if holding it's breath. The only sound was from the light breeze brushing the against the trees and branches, it was so still that the blood in Shirou's head sounded like drums in his ears and his breath like the ragged gasping of a large animal. He forced himself to take a breath and calm himself, stretching out with his senses, trying to pinpoint the presences of the aura.

He was answered when a glint of metal shot from the brush nearby.

Shirou lunged back, barely missing a dark shape swoop by him, he could swear he felt the air friction of someone passing him. He kept standing, but his legs were wanting a reprieve, reinforcing them for endurance was starting to have it's drawbacks. Shirou heard a rustling of chains behind him and instinctively raised his sword in defense, the sound of metal clashing with metal was heard, as well as a soft surprised gasp. One that sounded...feminine?

Knowing he was at a disadvantage in the open, Shirou put his back against a large tree, his legs seeming to sigh in relief at the reprieve. However, now wasn't a time for rest, Shirou's gold eyes were scanning woods and brush for the figure that had just attacked him. Whoever it was, they had him in their sights, whereas he had no clue where they were.

"Aren't you going to use a Command Seal to summon your Servant?" A voice called out, it was female, low, and dare he say, sultry. It's origin was damn hard to pinpoint, it seemed to be coming from everywhere at once, no way he's be able figure out where she was...unless.

"No offense, but they're kind of precious, I'd rather not use them if I can avoid it." Shirou called back, eyes still frantically searching for the origin of the voice.

A soft feminine chuckle reached his ears.

"So, you do have some sense about you," The voice called again, her tone only slightly mocking. "Sadly, that won't be enough."

"Really?" Shirou called in challenge, "if that's the case then how am I still alive?"

"You should be careful with questions like those, they are likely to get you..." The voice trailed off, and the aura all around suddenly receded, as a great vacuum had sucked it all up. However, it wasn't all gone, it was now localized to one location. Above.

"...Killed!"

From above him, a figure of black and lavender descended, flash of steel revealing her armament.

 _"Time Alter: Doubt Accell!"_

The instinctual activation of the spell was the only thing that saved Shirou from being stabbed through the neck. Safely in his bounded field he lunged away from the tree, creating distance between himself and his opponent. The activation and use of the spell had most likely not taken more than a few seconds, Shirou only using it to create much needed distance between him and the attacker.

Shirou looked up, holding his reinforced sword up, staring at his opponent, his suspicions confirmed that she was indeed a Servant. Lavender hair ran from her head to her heels, almost creating a shroud behind her, her skin was fair as porcelain, but held a strange glow to it. Her skin contrasted with her clothing, black, from the tunic that covered her torso and thighs, to the bracers on her arms, glinting from the orange sun set. The strangest thing was the mask that covered her eyes, it didn't have slits, so she wouldn't be able to see...but she appeared the looking right at him. In her hands was a long chain with dagger-like nails on the ends.

"Hmm. You're quick on your feet, I'm impressed."

"Can't say the same for you, out of the Servants I've seen, you aren't too tough." Shirou called impulsively, surprised at his own bravado. The Servant's lip twitched in offense, but otherwise remained composed.

"I see, I can say that you are a brave one, but unfortunately, your tongue has soured any favor I had towards you, including my mercy," She said it all in monotone, no other movement made on her part. Shirou tightened his grip on his weapon, he didn't like how this was going, or could go. "As it is, I think I'm going to tear out those eyes that have deceived you, then, I'll rip you apart, limb by limb."

Despite his fear, Shirou stood tall. "Try it!"

His heart halted in fear as a sly smirk spread across the Servant's face, this didn't bode well.

"I won't have to." She said, grasping her chain and pulling it, Shirou frowned for a second, before his right arm was pulled towards the Servant, agony flared in full force as he was pulled off his feet, his weapon leaving his hand, leaving him defenseless. He was hoisted into the air, and suspended from a tall tree branch, his arm holding his weight, threatening to rip off. A pained glance at his arm revealed a spike run straight through his forearm, a chain wrapped around his limb's wound.

"You've been at my mercy since you came into this forest," The voice of the Servant came from behind him, like forbidden silk in his ear. "Now, where shall I start?"

Shirou was frozen in fear, at a loss at what to do, he had no weapon, using Time Alter wouldn't do anything, he had nothing to go off on. He was a rat in a snake's coil.

One of the Servant's nails came to rest in front of Shirou's face, aimed towards his eye. Panic was the only thought in his mind, nothing was available to him, he couldn't do anything...except...

" _What?_ " The Servant asked, outrage and shock in her voice. "He is a fellow Master, he must be eliminated!" Shirou frowned in confusion, until he realized she wasn't talking to him.

There was silence for a few seconds, then the nail before Shirou lowered and the chain in his arm dissipated. Instead of falling, he was carried to the ground by his arms, before set down on the ground. He turned to see the Servant seemingly looking down at him in contempt.

"This is your lucky day, boy, my Master has decided to spare you for the time being," She turned and began to walk away. "Make sure you don't waste this chance." And then the female servant dissipated into black and purple mist.

Shirou lay on the ground for several moments, breathing shallowly, staring at the spot where the Servant had disappeared. She had been so close to killing him, he had had no options, and yet her Master ordered her to spare him? Why? It would be the simple thing to kill him in order to destroy Saber, even if they didn't know which Servant he was the Master of, he was an easy target, so why spare him? The answers weren't forthcoming, and Shirou felt the stress his body endured coming upon his senses now that he was out of danger. His arm was in pain, but less intensely now, as for the rest of his body exhaustion plagued his limbs likely from evading the Servant's blows and then being suspended in the air.

"Emiya!"

Shirou looked over to see Rin running over to him, eyes opened and scanning the glade around him, looking for the Servant. Seeing and likely sensing nothing, she looked to him, seeing his state, she kneeled next to him, ripping off the lower sleeve of her school uniform.

"What happened?" She asked, wrapping the torn cloth around his wound.

Shirou explained the skirmish with the Servant, her appearance, and how she had had him in her clutches and then let him go. He described the audible conversation she had had with her Master, and how she had simply left without further conflict.

"She just left?" Rin asked.

"Yeah, just set me down here and took off."

Rin bit her lip in thought, trying to find a cause that was plainly simple. There was none forthcoming even to the Tohsaka heir.

"We'll talk about this at home, for now, let's get you there." Rin said, hoisting Shirou to his feet.

"Sounds good to me." Shirou agreed, wanting nothing more to lay down. This was the fifth Servant he had encountered, and the third that had tried, and come close to killing him.

* * *

Rider leaned against the wall of her Master's bedroom, having materialized in her casual clothes, awaiting her Master to arrive. She was clearly agitated, finger twitching anxiously. How could her Master do this? She had the enemy within her grasp, why did she have to recall her? If allowed to continue, she could have taken out both the Masters of Saber and Archer respectively, so why was she ordered to spare them?

Granted, it hadn't been her intention to face either, she had noticed the Bloodfort was being weakened, and upon investigation had seen a girl at the school, she didn't think she was responsible, but her Pseudo-Master had thought as much and ordered her to attack, nearly sucking the life from her. Then the Masters of Saber and Archer arrived, and thus she struck. If it wasn't clear enough before, the fact they were allies was proven then. And before she could even kill them, she's ordered to withdraw under threat of Command Seal.

The door opened at that moment, revealing her true Master, Matou Sakura, her purple eyes impassive as she made into the room, laying her bag on the bed, turning her gaze towards Rider.

"Rider, would you explain your actions to me?" She asked calmly.

Rider crossed her arms casually, "As you know Master, this is a War, and as such, to win this war, we must take the chance to lessen our competition. I was simply following through with that logic." She said simply, not daring to lie, Sakura was held too high in her favor for insincerity. A small frown formed on her face, despite her composure, Sakura was clearly displeased. It was odd how different she was as a Master as opposed to shy persona.

"I see," Sakura didn't rise. "Did you forget my orders from the first night of the War?"

Rider frowned in confusion. "Orders?"

"I told you to keep your distance from the Master of Saber and Archer, and then I find you actively attacking them."

"Master, they didn't have their Servants with them, they were defenseless, I am fighting this war for your victory, and victory cannot be achieved without eliminating the obstacles in your path." Rider argued, keeping her voice controlled and on point.

"You are only to defeat Saber and Archer, their Masters are off limits, are we clear?" Sakura asked as a means to the end of the conversation. No room for discussion was offered.

Rider looked upon her Master incredulously, why was she making this so difficult?

"Master-"

"Rider, if you don't follow my order I'll have to use a Command seal, and I'd prefer not to do that to you," Sakura interrupted her Servant, gazing upon her with a pleading gaze. "Please, do this for me."

Ordinarily, Rider would agree to Sakura's request, but there were too many strings attached to their relationship, she needed a straight answer.

"Unless I get an explanation of your mercy for those two, I cannot abide by your order," Rider paused, looking down on her Master biting her lip in frustration, she approached, and knelt down by her. "Please, Sakura, tell me what they mean to you."

Sakura looked at her, tears brimming her eyelids, she looked almost willing to explain, but instead, she gave her an apologetic stare.

"I'm sorry, Rider," she raised her hand, pulling off the handkerchief, revealing her Command Seals. "By the power of my Command Seal, I order you, Rider, to not bring any harm or danger to either Emiya Shirou or Tohsaka Rin for the reminder of the war."

The red design dissipated, with it Rider felt an energy shoot through her. While at the moment it didn't feel like it had changed anything, she knew that she wouldn't be able to bring harm to Saber or Archer's Masters, not in combat, nor incognito, officially, she could not raise a hand against them. Rider felt the familiar bite of anger swell in her veins, the anger she had lived with in her past life, the feeling of being controlled against her will. Raped, cursed, exiled, hunted, and killed, all because men and women alike wanted to control her, and this, this was no different.

"So be it, Master." Rider bit out, turning to dematerialize into Spirit form, however, warm arms wrapped around her body holding her.

"Please don't be angry, Rider." Sakura said, her voice soft and fragile. "I know you hate being controlled, and I know I haven't been upfront with you about many things, but please understand. I have to protect them."

Rider paused, caught by surprise by the contact from Sakura, but she couldn't be swayed. "They are your enemies, Sakura, they will fight you, whether you protect them or not. They will fight for the death for their goals and desires, and they won't hesitate to kill you for it. Believe me, I know." The Servant's bitter tone came from a lifetime of betrayal, hate and pain that she had been forced to endure, without any semblance of peace or happiness.

Sakura sniffled, evidently crying against Rider's back, the Servant didn't dematerialize, but nor did she turn and comfort her Master. She couldn't leave, yet she couldn't nor wouldn't take back her words. They had to be said. After a short while, Sakura's sniffles died down, and she took a deep breath.

"You must've had someone you cared for in your past life, Medusa," Sakura said, saying her true name and not her title. "Someone who cared for you when no one else did, someone who made sure you were safe despite the dangers that must've been apparent to them. Someone who loved you without hurting you."

Rider stiffened, eyes widening, her square irises looking forward but seeing nothing. Instead, they looked back to her previous life, there had been two who never left her side. Despite everything, they stayed with her until their time came, then hers. The only ones who loved her, regardless of the cruel Fates and Gods that ruled their world, their love for her transcended all fear and self-preservation, all for her sake.

Her sisters. Euryale and Stheno.

The only ones in her forsaken life to care for her when the world turned it's back on her. They had picked her up and cared for her, trying to help her make a life for herself, to try and live a peaceful life without pain.

Rider turned to Sakura, gazing down at the soft features, freshly marked with tears, she knew the feeling, she too had had that sense of helplessness. She reached out a hand and softly stroked Sakura's cheek, gazing down softly down at her Master, one who had suffered as much if not more than her, but had suffered in silence, without anyone to protect her. Rider had answered her summons because she felt an attachment, a true understanding of her suffering, and her need to protect her from the world that wrought pain and suffering. Without a word, Rider enveloped Sakura into a hug, while she wasn't one to engage or even participate in physical contact, her Master was the exception.

"I understand, Sakura," Rider said softly, at last understanding her Master, perhaps not knowing the full story, she knew that she cared for the two Masters very much, and she knew what the feeling was like. "Rest assured, I will trust your judgement on the matter, and if need be, protect them should they lose their Servants."

"Thank you, Medusa." Sakura said again, fully embracing the taller woman as a child would clutch a teddy bear.

A rare smile graced Rider's fair face, she wrapped a slender arm around her Master, returning the embrace "Think nothing of it, Sakura."

* * *

Coming home may have seemed like an ideal plan at the time, but now it seemed to Shirou that it was one of the worst things he could have done. Despite his wounds, Rin and he made it back to the house in record time, however, upon opening the door they had been greeted by Saber, and she less than happy with him. Initially, her scorn was plainly enough directed at Shirou, and was likely to focus on his forsaken promise to her given the late hour, however, upon seeing his bloodied and bandaged arm, she wordlessly led the two into the kitchen to treat the wound.

"Tell me what happened." Saber demanded as she retrieved the first aid kit and began to pull out the necessary materials to treat Shirou's injuries.

Rin briefly explained their goals in disabling the sigils attached to the bounded field around the school. She further described the Servant's attack on a young student, as well as Shirou's battle with the Heroic Spirit. As she did this, Saber unwrapped Shirou's arm, he was surprised to find the wound had healed amazing quickly, still a bit bloody, but the wound was smaller than it had been.

"You fought an enemy Servant?" Saber asked, her tone guarded as she rewrapped her Master's arm.

"Yeah, she didn't seem interested in killing me, at least not at first." Shirou replied, catching the narrowing of Saber's eyes.

"I see, did Rin come to your aid then?"

"No, she didn't."

Saber frowned. "Then how did you escape?"

Shirou shared an uncertain glance with Rin, her gaze clearly said it was up to him.

"She let me go," Saber's eyes widened, but she quickly regained her composure. "She was having an argument with her Master, and apparently, she was ordered to let me go."

"If she has a telepathic link to her Servant, why would she speak aloud?" Saber asked

"It may have just slipped her mind, tends to happen if you're caught by surprise," Rin supplied, now awaiting for the kettle to sing so she could drink her tea. "You wouldn't believe how many times Archer 'accidentally' lets slip a comment."

"Accidents are one thing, but a Servant arguing with her Master verbally?" Saber asked, shaking her head. "I can only suspect a ploy."

"I don't think so, the Servant did sound genuinely surprised, and if it was a ploy, it doesn't make much sense, given the fact that she literally had me in her clutches. She was two seconds from killing me." Shirou put in.

"Still, I am not convinced. Were you able to determine her class status?" Saber asked.

"No, sorry. I would guess Assassin, but as far as I can tell, she was too combat-orientated for that. And she definitely wasn't much of a magic user like a Caster." Saber turned from Shirou to Rin for input.

"Emiya's right, besides, the Sigils have a completely different aura than Caster's." Rin said, pouring herself and Saber a cup of tea from the kettle.

"How do you know that, Tohsaka?" Shirou asked.

"Archer and I found traces of Caster's presence in the Factory district last night, while it was only traces, it definitely was more potent than this Servant's aura."

Saber sat in thought, analyzing the tactical information given to her, before she came to a conclusion. "If the Servant was not Caster or Assassin, then it must be a Rider-class Servant."

Rin's brow furrowed, quirking her lips as well in thought.

"A Rider-class?" Shirou asked.

"Yes," Rin said, setting her tea cup down. "And seeing as you didn't see any stead, we can assume that she may have either lost it in battle already, or it may be her Noble Phantasm, my bet goes on the latter."

"Great, now we have both Rider and Caster at the school."

Saber's brow furrowed, but she didn't say anything, she seemed to be deep in thought over what Shirou and Rin had just told her.

"In anycase, we need to come up with a plan to deal with this Servant. Berserker and Caster are top on our priority list, but we can't ignore Rider and that bounded field of hers." Rin stated, clutching her chin in her hand as she started to brainstorm.

"I'm guessing our deactivating of the Sigils wasn't worth much?" Shirou asked.

"Of course not! Even if we dismantled them completely, it's a simple matter for Rider to put them up again, especially since she has the rough blueprint of where they are. No, we only drew her attention, we haven't done much to inhibit her at all."

"Okay, so what do we do?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Shirou shot Rin a blank look. She rolled her eyes and assumed her lecturing pose.

"Look, any day now Rider or her Master is going to activate the Bounded Field, and when that happens, everyone in the field will be converted into Mana. You said yourself the place was a time bomb, and we need to be there when it goes off." Rin explained punctually.

"If we're caught in the field when it's activated, what happens to us?"

"We'll be fine, we just need to keep generating our own energy. Hopefully that won't be necessary, we just need to find the Master and force him or her to take down the Bounded Field." Rin replied without any worry in her tone.

"And if they don't?" Shirou asked.

Rin shot him a dismissive glance. "We force Rider to, on the threat of her Master's life."

Shirou thought about it, trying to find a Servant was one thing, trying to find the Master, who apparently gave off no Magic aura, was another. Besides, given the after school performance tonight, neither were going to be out.

"Rin, how soon until I can attend the school?" Saber asked, Shirou turned to look at her in surprise, he had forgotten about that request she had.

"Don't worry, I took care of it," Rin said, reaching into her bag and pulling out a bundled school uniform. "Picked it up for you today actually." She shot a smug look at Shirou.

Shirou wasn't particularly flustered, they had been discussing it for the last few days, but with the excitement in dealing with Rider, he had all-but forgotten about the predicament with Saber. In any case he was grateful, in the event of Rider or some other Servant attacking them, Saber would be there. True, he didn't like the idea of her fighting for his sake, but after getting nearly killed on three separate occasions (and one where he was killed) he decided it'd be best to let Saber do most of the fighting, he wasn't passive by any means, but if he got himself killed what good would it do?

"Sounds good, is there anything else we should talk about?" Shirou asked, not missing the slightly disappointed look from Rin, she hadn't gotten the drop on him this time.

"There is one thing, Shirou." Saber spoke up.

"Well what is it?"

"We can discuss it later should you wish." She said, while his curiosity was piqued, he was grateful that it could wait a while longer. He had to make dinner soon.

Shirou nodded, turning to Rin. "Tohsaka?"

"Nothing comes to mind, I'll have to have a meeting with Archer and get his perspective on everything."

"Is he not here?" Saber asked.

"No, I've had him doing reconnaissance all day, he's looking for anywhere Caster could be. But we can discuss what he's found later." Rin said dismissively.

"Alright then, I'll get dinner started." Shirou said, standing up. Saber instantly stood to meet him.

"Shirou, you are injured. I insist that Rin cook dinner tonight, you should rest and heal." Saber said in a tone that left no room for argument.

Shirou frowned. "Saber, I'm okay. Don't worry about it." He tried to get past her, but she blocked his path again.

"No, Shirou, I will not allow this. No matter how slight the wound is, you should still rest. You fought a Servant don't forget, and walked away with your life. Now sit, and rest." Shirou inhaled to keep from making any remark, he knew Saber meant well, but this was ridiculous. His arm didn't hurt at all, in fact he had full control.

"Saber, it doesn't hurt, just let me make dinner so we can all eat." He protested stubbornly, not unlike his blond Servant.

"I cannot allow this Shirou, you are my Master, and as such, I have to secure your well-being if you will not do so."

"Saber, c'mon-"

"Enough you two!" Rin cried out, startling both Shirou and Saber from their quarrel.

The black-haired Mage stood up from her seat on the floor, stomped over to Shirou and ripped the fresh bandage from his arm.

"Rin-!"

"Tohsaka-?"

"Does that arm look injured to either of you?" She asked, both Shirou and Saber looked to see the smooth unmarred skin of his arm. Looking no worse for wear.

Shirou's eyes widened, Saber's brow furrowed. Neither did anything for several moments, until finally Saber pulled back. She gave a glance to Rin, then Shirou, then turned away and marched further into the house, towards the Dojo. She stopped at the corner.

"Saber?"

"Shirou, meet me in the Dojo before you start dinner, there are things I wish to discuss with you in private." With out another word, the blonde Servant left the kitchen.

Shirou stared off after her, completely confused. "What was that about?"

"You'd better find out, Emiya," Rin said, also exiting the living room. But not before throwing Shirou a sly look. "You never can keep a lady waiting."

With a grudging resignation, Shirou stood up and followed Saber's path to the Dojo, deciding it'd be better to get this over with now rather than wait. Inside the Dojo was Saber, in her hands were two wooden Shinai, upon his entrance, she tossed one to him. Shirou caught it in mid-air, shooting Saber a questioning glance.

"Saber?"

"If you are to face Servants head on, I see my only choice is to teach you how to fight. At the very least you can defend yourself until I am able to come to your aid." She said, assuming a sword stance.

"Saber...look, I'm sorry if you're upset, I know I broke my promise to you but-" Shirou began, but couldn't finish, as Saber lunged forward and swung at him.

Shirou leaped back, still clutching the Shinai, a look of confusion and fear on his face.

"Saber!?"

The blonde Servant leveled him a cool look. "If you intend to talk, then be prepared for a quick defeat, Warriors and Servants alike allow their blades speak on their behalf." She stepped forward again, swinging horizontally.

Shirou deflected it, and barely avoided an overhead strike against him. He pushed back again, intent on keeping the distance between them. While Saber wasn't going full-force by Servant standards, she was going the full strength and speed of a human. And that was more than enough to keep Shirou on his feet sans-Time Alter.

"Saber!-" Shirou cried, forced to dodge again and retreat. Going in circles around the Dojo would only give him so much space, eventually Saber would cut off his escape. Knowing he didn't have the luxury to retreat, Shirou went on the offensive meeting her practice sword with his own. She looked surprised at his tenacity, and her eyes narrowed again in focus as she struck again.

Shirou and Saber exchanged blows for a few moments before her superior swordsmanship got the better of him. He hit the floor of the dojo hard, internally grateful that his arm had healed so quickly, otherwise he'd probably be writhing in pain, still, he was accustomed to pain if nothing else.

Opening his eye, Shirou looked up the wooden sword to Saber, staring him down with cool green eyes. After a tense moment, she moved the sword and offered a hand to Shirou, who took it with some reluctance.

"Want to tell me what that was about?" He asked.

"We are but a few days into the war and you've almost been killed three times. If you refuse to stay back and allow me to do the fighting, then I have no choice but to train you in the ways of swordsmanship. You favor blades in any case, and in that regard, perhaps you can hold your own until I can arrive at any given time."

"Well, yeah. But if you're going to my school now isn't that kind of unnecessary?"

"Shirou, against Servants you stand little chance, that much is clear, but against Masters you may, if you can use your skills to your advantage, hold them off or even beat them," Saber straightened her back once more, readying her stance once more. "I want to make sure you are safe, Shirou."

Shirou's face flushed, slowing his brain down to a halt, so much so that he barely registered her strike coming towards him. But luckily his reflexes kicked in and he was able to avoid it.

He leaped back and readied his own weapon, Saber charged him, and Shirou waited until she moved.

" _Time Alter_ ," Saber's blade swung towards his torso. " _Double accel_!"

Shirou dodged the strike, and attacked with his own weapon, landing a strike on Saber's arm, as well as her midsection before she adapted and compensated with some of her Servant prowess. Before Shirou could run, he was again landing on the floor, with Saber's practice sword at his throat.

"Good intentions, but a poor execution. Against a normal human your attack would have been fruitful, but against a Servant, you have one, perhaps two strikes before they adapt. If you are in close-quarters with an enemy Servant, your only option to activate that spell, strike, and retreat. If nothing else, create distance between them and you." Saber critiqued, offering her hand again. Shirou took it and stood up.

"Again." She said, falling into her stance. Shirou mirrored her. This was going to be a long night.

* * *

Archer stood in the courtyard of the Emiya residence, having just finished speaking Rin concerning their plans. It seemed that her plans in hunting down Caster weren't done with, while Berserker was the bigger threat, he hadn't been active outside of the first battle. Likely due to the three lives he lost, one from Saber, another by Lancer, and finally him. Archer figured there was most likely a way for Berserker to regain his lives, but for now it was of no concern, Caster was on the top of their priorities.

All over the city she was draining the mana of the citizens, choosing incredibly populated areas and draining the people almost to the brink, then leaving them barely breathing. Caster was cunning, but he didn't seem ruthless, no, if he was, then more people would be dead.

While his daily scouting hadn't brought up much information, Archer figured Caster was on one of the laylines of Fuyuki. It was the most reasonable, considering the need for mana to operate in that particular class. Rin had wanted to focus on Rider, but he had dissuaded her, given that the idiot boy had survived, odds were that the female Servant wasn't worth their time, especially not with Caster's more potent presence in the city.

Archer stiffened, ripped from his thoughts by a foreign presence nearby. A glance over the shoulder confirmed his suspicion. The idiot stood there on the outer edge of the courtyard watching him.

"How are you wounds boy? Do they sting?" He asked mockingly.

"Screw off, Archer. Besides, I wouldn't have had any wounds if you had been there watching out for Tohsaka." Emiya Shirou bit back, fire in his amber eyes.

"Oh? Unlike you, I happen to have some confidence in my allies' skill, whereas you will rush in head first in some self-sacrificial attempt to save their lives by giving your own," Archer snarked, a steeled smirk on his tanned face. "While it may give you the peace you seek, you rob the person you tried to save an ally, and lessen their chances of survival. And for what? You can't exactly save people if you're dead."

"What would you know? You seem more keen on taking out allies instead of helping them." Shirou bit back.

Archer's brow rose. "I assume you are referring to the battle on the first night?"

The boy's glare was all that Archer needed in confirmation.

"This is a war, idiot, if I have the opportunity to achieve victory, I will take it. Besides, you got Saber out of range in time. Albeit taking a blow to the chest for your trouble."

"Right, because where's the risk in allies if you kill them with your opponent?"

"Hmph, you seem to be getting it now." Archer said, turning away from the boy and summoning his bow.

The boy was quiet for a few moments, and Archer would have enjoyed the silence if he didn't feel his eyes staring into the back of his head. In truth, Archer didn't have much of a reason to summon his bow, he merely wished to have something to occupy his hands and thoughts, but it appeared the idiot didn't get the message and remained where he was.

"Do you want something? I assume so, otherwise you wouldn't be standing there like an idiot."

"I'm just trying to figure you out."

Archer raised a brow but didn't turn towards him. "Oh? And why's that?"

"You could have dueled Saber the first night, with her limited reserves, you could have outlasted her in combat and beaten her." Shirou stated simply.

"If you have a point you should get to it soon."

"You held back when you fought her," Shirou stated boldly. "Why? Why didn't you fight her at full strength?"

"That's for me to know boy, and for you guess at when you're not trying to get yourself killed." Archer huffed, internally musing at the inquisitiveness of this boy, it was strange. He wasn't supposed to be so interested, he had noticed a few quirks that shouldn't have been there. For one, Rin had informed him of the boy's Magic Crest, interesting as the boy wasn't related to Kiritsugu by blood. As well as his acclimated skills with the crest. Still, he was an idiot.

"But I suppose I can say that I have my reasons," he said, turning and fixing Shirou with a cold steel gaze. "Anything else?"

"One thing, why do I get the feeling you want to kill me?"

"Ah noticed that did you?" Archer chuckled lowly, he hadn't exactly been hiding his hostility towards him, but nor had he been exactly forward with it. "For now I'll just say I know what path you're going down, and the means you go about it is something I cannot abide by. I would try to convince you, but we both know that wouldn't work." Archer turned away, willing himself into Spirit Form.

"Do yourself a favor, and don't let your incompetence get other people killed." Was Archer's last piece of advice before leaving Shirou alone in the courtyard, staring at the last spot Archer had been.

 **Author's Note- I apologize for getting this out later than usual (not even 24 hours, but still late!) I've been getting settled in at College and I'm afraid that it'll take up most of my time soon. I currently am writing chapter Eight, but its slow going, that chapter will be a behemoth and will be a major kick in the ass to take care of. Hopefully, it'll satisfy. Might make it extra long for compensation. I'll try to get it out next week, but only time will tell, I am no longer chapters ahead, and am writing as I go.**

 **For this particular chapter, I can't really say much either than I enjoy writing Rider, mostly because the mythical figure of Medusa interests me so much, and getting a chance to write for her in this format is amazing. Granted, I'm pretty sure I'm following the original myth canons in her backstory, just because it's the most natural and organic for me to work with, especially with her relationship to Sakura. Also, yay! She gets a little scene in this chapter, mostly because I wanted a scene with her and Rider. Sakura, I imagine acts differently as a Master than she would normally, obviously, as with Shirou and Rin it's like adopting a different persona, so while she's still shy, she gets her point across and gets her way, though she doesn't like doing it at the expense of Rider's freedom.**

 **You'll notice I cut the little scene in canon which points obvious fingers at Shinji about Mitsuzuri's dissapearance. In all honesty, I kind of feel the dissapearance of her is more just to establish Shinji as a villain. Which...he really isn't in this fashion, don't get me wrong, he's an arrogant pissant who I'd love to see get the living shit kicked out of him (foreshadowing grows) but aside from supposedly controlling Rider, he doesn't have much purpose in the case of this story. Though, I'm debating on whether or not I should kill him, while he's a despicable human being, he's just a punk with a complex revolving around his inability to get anywhere. Whether it's getting Tohsaka or his inability to even fight or have a reason to fight as opposed to just getting power. Yeah, I'll take some ideas/feedback on this one, it might be interesting to see if Shinji could potentially get redeemed, but with all he does to Sakura and everyone...yeah death to him sounds better. I'm indecisive. But back to my original point, Mitsuzuri is not drained of Mana, so she's up and about doing her thing, yay!**

 **Finally, we got Archer, I just wanted a short interaction between him and Shirou to add some meat to the ending, and give some development for their conflicting personalities, as well as aftermath to the cemetary battle and first night, you'll notice they aren't exactly chatty with one another. So I wanted to get that out of the way.**

 **As always, reviews and pm's regarding the story or questions on it's directions are welcomed and appreciated.**

 **Till next time,**

 **~ArgoGladius**


	8. Master of Rider

Fate/Raining Blades Chapter VIII

Shirou had to take stock of his situation as he walked to school. He had Sakura walking with him, that's wasn't so unusual, but in this case she was rather quiet. Then there was Tohsaka Rin to his right, behind him, also strangely quiet, he had to wonder if it was because of Sakura, they had some strange tension between them. Finally there was Saber, posing under the name of Elizabeth Harrison, an exchange student from the United States. In the case of the latter, Shirou had the most trouble keeping his gaze away, she wore a tan school uniform of Homurahara High, albeit with a white coat and blue scarf over it.

Today was her official day of school, and while Shirou did voice concern over the subjects that would be discussed in class, Saber assured him that between her experience in her life and knowledge from the grail, she would be more than fine. Shirou had taken her word, and went along with it, now all he was concerned with was the various reactions from the school crowd. Already there had been murmurings of his supposed "harem" growing in size, it had started when Rin had begun to walk with him and Sakura to school, and now, with Saber entering the picture, that particular reputation wasn't going to get better.

In all fairness, there were more important things to worry other than school, like Rider and Caster's interest in the school, when Berserker would turn up again, Saber's limited Mana reserves due to their incomplete pact, and of course Archer.

Shirou narrowed his eyes at the thought of the Silver-haired Servant. The way he had spoken to him with such familiarity and in such a critical nature really irked him. This guy claimed to know where he was going and what his ideals were, but what did he know? What could he know? He and Archer hadn't exchanged words outside last night, and still he was someone Shirou felt such unbounded anger and aggression towards, and the feeling was clearly mutual.

But why?

To an extent, Shirou could understand Archer's actions, not necessarily agree with them, hell no, but he understood. Archer wanted victory, he was willing to implore the best method of success to achieve it. Even if it caught allies in the crossfire, but this was the Holy Grail War, and potential allies would eventually be adversaries at one point or another. In that regard, Archer, in a tactical viewpoint, was in the right, however, it wasn't a viewpoint Shirou could agree with. Sacrificing allies to achieve victory over one foe only to be faced with another down the road who would only have their sights on Archer and his Master, which alone was good enough reason to keep allies close. However, Shirou knew that if he were to have his way, there wouldn't be a war to start with. For now, he had to keep a wary eye on Archer whenever he was present, else he left him to his devices, which for all he knew, could be his and Saber's deaths.

"Shirou, does something trouble you?" Saber asked, regarding him with a slightly concerned look.

Shirou shook off the thoughts on Archer, tightening his scarf and putting on a hearty smile. "Yeah, sorry, just a bit chilly."

"I see." Saber said, clearly unconvinced.

Shirou and Saber walked at the front of the group, with Sakura and Rin trailing behind with an awkward distance between them, neither spoke. Shirou considered asking what the problem was, but he knew that if Sakura didn't want to talk about it, she wouldn't budge, and Rin...it was probably best not to ask what was eating her. If someone noticed and called her up on it, she'd be put into an even fouler mood. For the time being, Shirou shut down his mind and set on walking to the school, leading the group to what he expected to be an interesting day.

As it turned out, Shirou was right.

Upon entering the premises, and Shirou experiencing a more minor reaction to the semi-active bounded field, many of the regular students who had arrived shot glances at Saber. The few around who were in the Archery club showed recognition of Saber and Shirou turning without much gawking. However, those unfamiliar with Saber stared in awe at the Caucasian woman walking in such close proximity to the school handy-man, along with the school idol and the first-year Sakura. As he had feared, Shirou heard the whispers of "harem" and "mind-control" out of the gossipers hear about.

As fortune would have it, upon hearing the whispers, Rin broke out of the sullenness she had been wrought in, and shot a few intimidating smiles at them. Instantly the whispers died as she acknowledged them, fear of having been heard silencing them for the time being. Hopefully long enough to get through to lunch.

After saying goodbye to Sakura, Shirou, Saber and Rin made their way to the second-year wing. Rin, knowing of Saber's preference to remain by Shirou's side put him in his class. While they suspected she could thrive in Rin's class, they hoped it'd be a temporary situation, and it was mostly for protection of Shirou and Rin should the need arise.

As it was, Shirou and Rin stood in the hallway between their classes saying their farewells for the morning block, Saber stood beside Shirou listening intently and observing the hallways subtly.

"Okay, so meet on the rooftop for lunch, Emiya?" Rin asked, ignoring more side-glances at the three of them. Most were still curious to the sudden friendship between her and Shirou, and now for another girl to enter into the picture had eyebrows quirked.

"Yeah sure, want anything from the cafeteria?" Shirou asked.

"Get me a milk tea." Rin said as she turned towards her class. Shirou smirked, knowing she'd never thank him without need to. Not that she'd ever find a need to thank him for anything.

"Rin does not hold high regard for showing gratitude does she?" Saber asked.

"Yeah, but that's how she is. I don't think she really knows how to."

"Fair perception," Saber said. The chiming of the bell signaled the beginning of classes for the day. "Shall we head to class now, Shirou?"

Shirou nodded with a soft smile. "Yeah, let's go."

Entering the classroom caused a stir of silence and collection of stares as Shirou and Saber walked in. Those who had seen her whispered to neighbors, those who hadn't only stared in curiosity and wonder. Saber, not to be one to shy away from anything, met everyone's stare with firm eye contact, many looked away, but some bowed respectively to which she bowed in turn. Eventually, everyone began to talk to each other about other topics at hand, figuring they'd learn about the new girl at some other point.

Shirou exhaled in relief and made his way to his seat, noting that the seat behind him had a piece of paper that read "Seat reserved for Harrison Elizabeth, Transfer Student." Without a word, Saber set her school bag down beside it and turned to Shirou who in turn gave her an impressed look.

"You handled the stares fairly well." Saber smiled softly, but kept her expression mostly neutral.

"I've...dealt with crowds before. It is nothing I am not used to."

"Fair, ready for your first day of school?"

Saber smiled slightly. "I am, I appreciate that you and Rin allowed me to do such a thing."

"Don't worry about it, it's more practical for a lot of stuff, besides, I won't have to break any more promises to you. Can't say I enjoyed doing so last time." Shirou said, sitting down.

"Indeed." Saber said simply, smiling down at Shirou as the latter completely missed it.

A voice clearing and a presence approaching caused Saber to school her expression into a neutral pose. The person who had approached was none other than Issei, a warm and welcoming smile on his face.

"Hello, if I may introduce myself," he held out a hand. "I'm Ryuddou Issei, welcome to Homurahara High." Saber looked at the hand for a few seconds before taking it and shaking firmly.

"I'm Elizabeth." She said simply, he nodded with an easy smile on his face.

"Are you a friend of Emiya's?" He asked.

"Yes, my family had ties to his Father and I came to visit Shirou, and he suggested I attend school with him to learn from the culture." She said without fault.

"I see," he pushed his spectacles up the bridge of his nose. "Well, you're in good hands, Homurahara High is the best school in Fuyuki if results are to be believed, and you're in good hands, Emiya is probably the best man to show you the school."

"Hey Issei," Shirou spoke up, having heard the whole conversation. "Don't speak of me like I'm not here." He said with friendly intentions.

Issei chuckled, "Sorry, Emiya, but figured your friend could use a warm welcome."

"I appreciate it very much, Issei." Saber said, for a second Issei looked perplexed at the use of his first name, but he recalled that western cultures used the first name when addressing others, so he shrugged it off.

"Not to worry, Elizabeth, I'm interested in seeing how you do." He said, the bell ringing instigating the beginning of class.

Fujimura entered the room as soon as the bell rang and introduced "Elizabeth" to the class, explaining the reasons she had been given for the sole foreign student in the school. Afterwards, business in class continued as usual.

Shirou made an effort to pay attention during class, casting a few looks at Saber as he did so. To his relief, Saber was focusing on the class intensely, never straying from her notes nor getting distracted by the stares that were being directed at her occasionally. Out of his eye, Shirou caught Shinji casting looks at Saber, his lecherous stares making his blood boil. There had been a few looks like that during the morning but most guys and girls had the decency to at least be subtle about their ogling. Matou Shinji however, made no effort, opening admiring Saber's form from across the room. If they weren't in the middle of class right now, Shirou would have made those eyes focus on his fist flying towards them.

Shirou shook himself, surprised at his sudden animosity and protectiveness. After all, Saber could handle herself against above-human warriors of the past, she could handle a leering piss-ant like Shinji. Still, Shirou didn't like perverts, especially when they were so open about it, and for some reason the thought of Shinji giving Saber such a stare made him want to punch the obnoxious older Matou in the face.

"Shirou, are you alright?" Saber whispered, not wishing to attract any attention.

Her voice brought him out of his brooding. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"SHIROU! Now is not discussion time!" Taiga yelled from the front of the class.

"Sorry, Fujimura-Sensei." Shirou admonished, casting a glance to the side to see Shinji throw a smug look at him before facing forward. Oh the bastard was asking for it now.

Eventually, Shirou's blood cooled and he was able to get through the morning classes. Now the bell for lunch was heard and Shirou got up from his chair, Saber quickly following suit. Both heading out of the classroom, however a call from Issei stopped them for a moment.

"Emiya, Elizabeth, would you two like have lunch with the student council today? I'm sure they would like to meet you, and most likely set you up with a club as well." He asked pleasantly.

"I'm sorry, Issei, but Shirou and I have plans to eat with Rin today." She said earnestly, Issei winced at the mention of Tohsaka's first name, but recovered quickly.

"No worries, the offer is open any time. Have a good lunch." He said, to which Saber bowed.

"Thank you."

Shirou and Saber quickly made their way through the hallways, attempting to make it to the rooftop before the crowds swarmed the cafeteria. Thankfully, there were making good time, Shirou picked up a milk tea for Rin from the vending machine, and got an extra thing of rice for Saber before heading to the rooftop. However, en route to the roof entrance, through a rather vacant hallway, a wiry hand clutched on Shirou's bicep suddenly, and while the strength behind it wasn't enough to stop him, he turned to see who had grabbed him. His feet stopped as he glared at Matou Shinji, who wore a revolting smirk on his face.

"Emiya, aren't you going to introduce me to your friend?" He asked.

Instead of reacting in anger, Shirou took the extra step to reset his vocabulary to not carry over from his thoughts. "No, I don't have any reason to."

The smug bastard had the nerve to look hurt. "C'mon, Emiya, I'm sorry for what I did to Sakura, I've stopped since then. Can't a guy get a second chance?" He asked.

"You've used up your second chance, and maybe you stopped for now Shinji, but one day I'm going to find bruises on Sakura again, and this time, I'm not just going to give you a bloody nose." Shirou growled out, shocking both Saber and Shinji with the intensity in his voice.

"Emiya-" Shinji tried to plead.

"Fuck off, Shinji." Shirou growled as turned away, Saber casting him a concerned look.

Shinji's face went from disbelief to rage. "Fine, I don't need to know your fuck-buddy anyways, I bet she wished she had someone to show her what it's really like to have a good time. Sadly, all she has is a pussy-boy too weak to take any action for his supposed friends."

Something in Shirou snapped, one second he was walking away with Saber at his side, the next his fist was slamming into Shinji's face. Once. Twice. He lost count after the third. He pummeled Shinji's face with both clenched fists, only thinking about trying to destroy the jaw that flapped his ever lecherous mouth. In all fairness, Shirou wasn't punching that hard, well not in the case of his fists being reinforced. Regardless, Shinji's face would, unfortunately, stay together, but it'd bleed and be bruised badly at this rate. Unfortunately, Shirou didn't know if he could stop the barrage.

It was only Saber's hand clutching his wrist that brought Shirou back to reality. With a guarded look, she gently pulled him up to his feet and walked away, leaving Shinji curled up in a ball on the floor, protecting his face. He didn't look back, only focusing on calming his rage, however he didn't get the chance as Saber pulled him to the stairs that would lead to the roof.

"What the hell were you trying to accomplish Shirou?" She asked with a restrained tone of anger. Wait, what about? Shinji?

"What do you mean?" He asked.

Her emerald eyes narrowed. "I am talking about the boy you just assaulted with your fists, what drove you to do something like that?"

Shirou could only mentally beat himself with a stick, of course Saber wouldn't be privy to looks men threw her. "Okay, look. Shinji was...watching you all through class, and not in a studying or curious manner, he was..." He broke off embarrassed.

"'He was' what, Shirou?"

Taking a deep breath, Shirou decided to go for the truth, Saber wouldn't except anything less. "He was watching you in a lecherous manner, like...like he wanted to engage in sexual relations with you."

Saber was quiet for a few moments, absorbing what Shirou had said. "I see," she looked him in the eye, anger gone. "And what did you hope to accomplish by pummeling him with your fists? If it was only that you would have struck sooner, what was it he said about Sakura?"

Restraining the urge to clench his fist, Shirou told her. He told her about how he met Sakura while he and Shinji had still been friends. How he began to find the bruises, and how Shirou had taken none to kind to that. Since then, Sakura had visited Shirou in the mornings and evenings, the latter terminating his and Shinji's friendship. The blond Servant took it all in quietly before responding.

"I see, so you struck him in accordance with his previous history of abusing Sakura, as well as his leering towards me?" She asked neutrally.

"Yes."

Saber nodded and composed herself further, if that was possible.

"While I do not condone nor approve of you assaulting a weaker man who cannot defend himself, no matter his moral character, I will concede that he did antagonize you, and that in turn caused you to lash out. It is a natural reaction, but an uncouth one, and while I understand the context, I cannot in good faith let it pass." Saber said, Shirou felt like he was being lectured by a therapist, but in this case, he didn't mind so much. Mostly because Saber had been inadvertently involved.

"Furthermore, Shirou, refrain from fighting in my stead. If all this Shinji did was leer at me, it is no consequence to provoke physical action. If he had tried to force himself upon me, then perhaps you'd have reason to act, but as it is, I could easily subdue him in an instant, or break every bone in his body were I so radically minded. I can take care of myself, I understand now that it is in your nature to help people, but refrain from getting into battles for the sake of me. As you know, I am more than capable of fighting my own battles." Saber continued, tone never fading or dispersing.

"I understand, I'm sorry, Saber." Shirou admonished, bowing slightly in respect. Sometimes he wondered who was the calm and collected one between the two of them, while normally calm, Shirou was prone to headstrong decisions.

Saber's neutral expression broke into a soft smile. "As long as you learned Shirou, standing up for others is noble, but that nobility is lost if you attack a defenseless person. Regardless of their morality, attacking someone who is not fighting back is ignoble. Your heart is in the right place, but your actions were in the wrong."

Shirou nodded, accepting the soft firmness of her arm on his own. She clearly sensed he was ashamed, but knew he didn't attack Shinji for the hell of it, there was only so much he could take. But Saber seemed to understand and sympathize with that to a degree, so it was lucky she was here. If she hadn't been there, Shirou didn't know if he'd be able to stop beating on Shinji. But she had stopped him, and even talked through it with him. Usually he was told something was right or wrong strictly, never an in between, whereas Saber acknowledged his heart's standing, but disagreed with the course of action. No one had ever given him such support.

"Thanks, Saber." She smiled back at him, once again, Shirou's heart skipped a beat at the simple and yet exuberant beauty that emanated from Saber. So much so he stopped dead in action and thought, unsure as to what was the next step.

"Got to hand it to you, Emiya, I didn't think you had it in you." Rin called as she approached the two.

"Tohsaka?" Shirou questioned.

"I just saw Shinji, his face was bleeding and he kept mumbling 'Emiya...Emiya'," Rin said, putting a mischievous grin on her face. "What made you do such a retched thing, Emiya-kun?" Rin asked in mock horror.

"I..." Shirou began, only to trail off lamely. He really didn't want to go over this. "I'll tell you later, Tohsaka. Besides, weren't we going to have lunch together?" Shirou asked, making his way to the stairs, Saber followed shortly. Rin stared after the two of them, slightly flustered at being denied an answer, but unwilling to admit it. So, she puffed out her chest and followed.

* * *

"So there's no sign of the Master?" Shirou asked, frustrated that they were making no progress.

Rin shook her head, taking a casual sip from her Milk Tea. "It's not that surprising, odds are they're trying to lay low after we encountered their Servant, and besides, there was no guarantee that we would find anything. We know they operate around the school, but that doesn't necessarily mean they're in the school itself, it'd make sense, but for all we know they may have just been by to set up the bounded field. They could have already set it up somewhere else where we won't get involved. In any case, we have the upper hand."

"But that leaves us with nothing! If Rider sets it up somewhere else people are going to die there, we have to find her." Shirou argued. Rin shot him a glare.

"Well if you have any ideas, Emiya, then why don't you enlighten us as to how we track her and stop her?" She fired back, Shirou said nothing, knowing he wasn't going to be making any headway.

"That's what I thought." Rin stated, taking a swig of her tea, probably relishing in the irony of the situation, he had bought the thing for her after all.

"Rin, Shirou has a valid point. If we have driven Rider from this location, she is likely to target a different building soon. If at all possible, we should seek her out and defeat her." Saber interjected, not quite at ease with Rin's superior tone with Shirou.

The Tohsaka heiress had the decency to wince in abashment. "Well, if you two want to track her down tonight be my guess. Archer and I will be looking for Caster, so odds are you won't have backup from Archer or me." With that, the lunch bell sounded and all three got up.

"I'll meet you guys back the house after school, we can talk about it more then." Without further ado, Rin walked away, leaving Shirou and Saber to head towards class again.

Saber had eaten more than her fill this time around, even half of his lunch (he wasn't exactly hungry after the Shinji encounter) initially Saber had been concerned, but ate the food regardless. As it was, she seemed to understand what he was feeling, and she did make him eat at least half of his lunch. 'Hunger is the enemy' she had said.

Arriving back at class wasn't too eventful, save for the fact that everyone's wandering gazes now ignored Saber and instead focused on him. News did seem to travel quickly. For the most part, Shirou ignored it, sitting in his seat and soon joined by Saber. Issei showed up soon enough, nodding politely at Saber and giving Shirou a concerned look before sitting down. Shinji didn't show up at all, not that Shirou could be disappointed, the last thing he wanted was to deal with the arrogant bastard and see his own handy work.

Even if he ignored the looks though, Shirou became more and more self-conscious as the looks of his classmates continued to peer in on him. Whispers of how he had viciously attacked Shinji met his ears, and while some suggested that he had been edged on, others thought he was jealous of the older Matou's popularity. While not the case, Shirou still felt afflicted by it, clenching his fists into his palms until they bled. The gossipers, unaware of Shirou's internal storm, let their whispers grow louder, their hushed accusations becoming even more damning. Some ranging from Shirou's need to get even with Shinji over a girl, or even that the former was lusting over the latter's younger sister and beat him up so he wouldn't be denied.

"Do you all have no shame!?" A voice suddenly broke the sea of half-whispers. Shirou was surprised to recognize the voice as Saber's. Sure enough, Saber was standing up, and while not in her armor and in a school uniform, she still commanded a potent air of authority. Emerald eyes peering into the eyes that stared at her.

"You all whisper about an event you know nothing of, and you dare question Shirou's honor? Shirou of all people?" Saber asked with reigned in anger. "I may be new, but from what I have heard and what I know, Shirou has done nothing of ill-will towards anyone in his time at this school. Does one battle make him qualify of the most vile crimes and fetishes that you whisper of? Or are you all simply not entertained with your own lives that you must portray another's to be a bastardization of what it is?"

All eyes were downcast, even Issei, who had the decency to look abashed and guilty, he too had been having similar thoughts. Without another word, Saber sat down, no less intimidating or regal as before. Shirou stared at her with shock, why did she do that?

"Well, I see our new student is settling in quite nicely." Came the deep and monotone voice of Kuzuki Souichirou. He stood at the front of the class, holding the history text book as well as the attendance sheet. While his face was stoic as always, it seemed softer to a degree, evidently he had heard Saber's defense of Shirou.

Kuzuki began class as per usual, and while Shirou couldn't say it was the most lax class ever, he also couldn't say that Kuzuki didn't know his stuff. He was very detail-orientated on each subject he covered, and often he would call upon students to answer his questions, if they didn't respond quickly, he would hound them for the rest of class, for the most part which was focused on people not paying attention. If one answered quickly, and with conviction, he would tend to be more lenient about correcting them.

As it was, Kuzuki-Sensei was going into lecture on the Feudal system, not only in Japan, but also Medieval Europe's model. In his compare and contrast method, he seemed to illustrate many similarities, while also highlighting the differences. For instance, Samurai were actually paid for their duties, usually in rice, whereas Knights of Europe were paid in land as well as coinage. While both were trained in codes of honor, the Samurai's way of Bushido was more stressed on loyalty to the Daimyos, their Lords, and trained to not fear death and except it should it come to him. A Knight meanwhile, had duties towards their Lord's vassals, or rather citizens, but for the most part were more concerned with their political and societal standings, if either were lost they could lose their standing as Knight, as well as anything they claimed. As it was, there noble and ignoble examples of both in history, especially to those they either helped or oppressed, but it seemed that by code alone, Knights had more to lose, and more value as to what they would lose. However, their code did dictate they could disobey their Lord's command if it conflicted with their conscience and sense of Justice.

It was all very interesting, the only issue was that Shirou wasn't focusing on it at all, he was too engaged in his own internal thoughts, more than a little frustrated with Tohsaka and the whole Shinji incident. Understandably, he was stressed not only by the events of today, but of those the previous night and right now he didn't want to be at school.

"Harrison, you have a statement?" Kuzuki-Sensei asked, Shirou looked to see Saber's hand in the air…what the hell was she doing?

"Yes Kuzuki-Sensei, I would like to make a statement regarding the Feudal Knights and their code of Chivalry."

Kuzuki raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Was it a subject you thrived in at your old school?"

"Yes sir."

Kuzuki stared down Saber for a good several seconds, Shirou and the rest of the class watched as the stare down continued. At most, students could hold out for half a minute before they either lost composure, or the stony teacher gave them a reprieve. Saber and Kuzuki held each others gazes for a whole minute. Neither gave in, neither dared look away.

The majority of the class was awestruck at the Foreign student's ability to hold Kuzuki's gaze, no one held out that long, especially not an exchange student. Of course, they didn't know what Shirou did, if Saber could look down a Servant like Berserker, then a School teacher was no contest.

Kuzuki's expression didn't change, but something like approval seemed to show in his dead-black eyes.

"Very well, Harrison, what do you have to say about Chivalry?"

"What you say about the Chivalric code is not untrue, Knights in the later medieval age did have a stronger sense of preservation. However, many did follow their vows to protect the people below them, and unlike the Samurai, if they felt their lord ordered something unjust, their code allowed them to not follow it, or even rebel against it. Something not allowed for the Samurai." Saber said, very well rounded.

"I see, well technically you are right, but no matter how much we idealize Knights and Samurai, they usually followed the one who paid them in money, resources or land. Regardless of their character." Kuzuki rebutted.

"Indeed, but you cannot condemn a class of warriors based on the action of the majority, many followed their codes honorably and with virtue. By focusing on the majority, you dismiss the minority entirely."

The class was dead silent as Kuzuki regarded Saber curiously, evidently he was intrigued. He took a moment to adjust his glasses. "Be that as it may, history remembers those who were the survivors, and regardless of their virtue or character, the noble Samurai and Knights, for the most part, are overshadowed by the events and more ruthless characters around them. History is written by the victors, not the idealists." Kuzuki stated.

"Do you suggest they are insignificant in the grand scheme of history then?" She asked, Shirou tensed as he recognized the indignation in her tone.

"Not at all, there are many examples of good Knights and Samurai in history, however, for the sake of this course we are simply focusing on the concept of Feudalism in Europe and Japan, individual heroes among the warrior classes does not work in the major focus of this subject." Kuzuki said, clearly dismissing the subject. Saber, however looked far from done on the subject, and remained standing to continue.

"Harrison," Kuzuki said before she could get a word out. "While I appreciate your interest, I have to ask you to sit down now."

Saber stood stubbornly up, she was not going to let this go it seemed, but now was not the time for the blonde's stubbornness. Shirou stood up at the moment, catching everyone's attention.

"Sa-Elizabeth, please sit down." Shirou requested calmly, Saber looked towards him, ready to argue, but she stopped cold at his stony gaze. Wordlessly she sat down. Shirou then turned to Kuzuki.

"Kuzuki-Sensei, I'm sorry. Elizabeth's family has deep roots in medieval history, her father was an expert on Knights and Chivalry. She has a fierce respect for Knights who honored their vows." Shirou said in a neutral tone.

Kuzuki nodded in affirmation. "Very well. Now, let's continue the lesson."

The rest of the day passed by seamlessly, Saber didn't react as strongly as she did concerning history for the rest of the day. It was gratifying, Shirou was simply grateful that Kuzuki hadn't given Saber any punishment, he had actually seemed pleased with her speaking up. No one had ever spoken so brazenly or earnestly in his class before, most gave the answer they thought he'd want to hear.

As for Shirou, he was just glad the day was over, at the moment, he was standing in the kitchen at his house, preparing some rice for tonight's meal. He was going to be thorough, if he and Saber were going to be out tonight, they had to keep their strength up. More him than her, regardless food was requested by Saber as well.

With the course finished, Shirou set it down at the table, Saber the only one there with him. Archer and Rin had already departed in search of Caster, Sakura had gone home after school, and Taiga was off having dinner with a man at her grandfather's behest. At the very least, Shirou and Saber could talk freely about the plan for tonight.

"So, Saber, any ideas on where we should start for tonight?" Shirou asked as he slowly ate through his white rice.

Saber took a sip of her tea and considered a moment. "I believe the best place to start would be the school, it was the last place they were at. In fact, they may not have taken the bounded field down yet, we may be able to catch them in the act."

"That's fair, but what happens if they turn out to be gone?"

"We search for them, Rider's bounded field has a strong potency to it, even when inactive, as long as I am within close proximity to it, I'll be able to find it. Your natural sensitivity to magic should be beneficial, hopefully that will give us more of an edge in detecting Rider."

Shirou nodded, setting down his empty bowl. "So long as we stop her from setting up another Bounded Field."

"Agreed," Saber rose gracefully, placing her own bowl down. "Shall we depart, Shirou?"

"Yeah, but first can I ask you a question?" Saber nodded. "As a Saber you're of the Knight class right?"

"Yes, why do you ask?"

"As a Knight you have the ability to assume control of any vehicle right?"

"Yes, perhaps not to the degree of a Rider class, but I can operate any vehicle, and I have a certain affinity with them. Why do you ask Shirou?"

Shirou grinned, gesturing for Saber to follow him. Wordlessly she followed as Shirou led her into courtyard and into the shed. In the back was something with a tarp over it. Shirou removed the tarp, a glint went up Saber's eyes and met Shirou's.

"Shirou, you are too kind."

Shirou pulled a set of keys out of his pocket, tossing them at Saber. "I wouldn't say that, but you're welcome." She smiled as she gripped the motorcycle by the handlebars and walked it out of the shed and into the driveway. She turned on the ignition, and smiled at the familiar feeling of this modern vehicle under her. While not living like a horse, Saber had found the riding of a motorcycle as enjoyable as that of a steed, more so in fact.

It was time to ride.

* * *

Shirou clung to Saber's waist tighter as she turned a rather sharp corner. She was going the speed limit, but in some parts of the city the roads were rigid and close, he was just thankful that she knew what she was doing. Rin had told him at some point that as one of the three Knight classes, Saber, assuming she had been a Knight in her past life, would have a riding skill, and as it turns out she did.

It hadn't been much of a surprise to Shirou, Saber definitely had a code of chivalry and with her passionate defense of the Feudal Knights in class, it was more than obvious she was associated with European Knights in some way. Despite that, Shirou tried to wrack his brain as to who her identity could be, there weren't a lot of female Knights to his knowledge, and none he could think to match Saber's personality. Jeanne d'Arc was the first name to come to mind, but the idea of a peasant girl with some connection to God didn't seem to be like Saber at all. She sounded...more refined and authoritative that he'd assume, without the grand piety that came of a follower of a faith, as far as he could tell, Saber didn't really seem suited for that.

So, Saber's identity remained a mystery, but that was fine, Shirou didn't need to know if she didn't want to tell him. For now, they had a job to do, find Rider and her Master, maybe put an end to their scheming once and for all.

"Shirou," Saber said, easily understandable over the wind and engine. "I suggested we investigate the school first, shall we head there as we discussed?"

"Yeah, no sense starting at a random spot, even if they're not at the school still, we might be able to get a trace of them and their trail. You can sense other Servants presences right?"

"If there is enough of their presence then yes, however, were we to track them, I would have to be close proximity. I don't have any special tracking skills, nor do I have Archer's sight, however any magic Rider or her Master casts will be null due to my magical resistance."

"That's something." Shirou replied.

Saber seemed to stiffen for a moment before she corrected her posture.

"Shirou." She said, her tone controlled and cool as always.

"Yeah?"

"If we find Rider and her master...how shall we dispatch them?" There was a slight hesitance in her voice, not a hesitance in her, but rather about asking the question.

"What do you mean? You take on Rider and I'll take on her Master if he's there."

"Yes, however, I meant in regards to the fate of the Servant and Master. Do you wish me to kill them both?"

Shirou internally winced, knowing this question was going to be asked eventually. There was no doubt that Rider had to be stopped, if she was left alive she'd just make more of these bounded fields, converting people into Mana without any check on her targets, less another Servant or Master grows weary of her actions. Shirou knew this war wasn't going to allow for a diplomatic resolution, and though Rider's Master had ordered her to spare him, there was no skirting around the issue; Rider had to go down. Before anyone else got hurt, or worse.

Rider's Master was a shady area for Shirou, again, her Master had ordered her to spare his life. For what reason he didn't know, but he figured it wasn't good, especially if Rin was right and the Master was the one ordering Rider to put up the bounded field. If that was the case, then the Master was no better, doing whatever he could to keep his Servant active. At the cost of people's lives. Even if this guy was ignorant to the war, he had to know what he was doing, at least a little bit. If they did find Rider and her Master, Shirou would give them the chance to explain, but regardless, at the end of the night, Rider and her Master had to be defeated, and even if it made him sick to his stomach, Shirou knew there wasn't any other way to get through this war and keep people from getting killed.

"Shirou?"

Shirou straightened, and took a deep breath. "If her Master is the one behind the bounded field, then we'll have to take care of him. For now, just focus on taking out Rider, if it comes to it, I'll take care of her Master." He said, surprised at how level his voice was.

"Very well, Shirou."

A few minutes later, Saber and Shirou arrived at the closed school, dismounting the motorcycle the Master and Servant approached the closed gate. Picking the lock, the two made their way in. It occurred to Shirou that the only other time he'd been at the school during the night was when the war started, and what a crazy night that had turned out to be.

As it was, Shirou had been too focused on reclaiming his father's journal to study his surroundings at the time, frankly he was now glad for the fact. It was unsettling to see the school at night, it was so quiet and spacious, something you don't notice when there are a good few hundred people in and around the halls daily. With the darkened windows, and brisk evening breeze, the school was definitely not someplace Shirou wanted to be, especially not if they found Rider hanging around here. Taking a shuddering breath, Shirou made his way forward, Saber trailing behind him.

"Do you sense anything?"

"I can tell the presence of the bounded field has diminished since day time, likely Rider and her Master opted to deactivate it, draining what energy they could from the seals. As it is, it is not an overly significant amount."

"Alright, is there any place where the seals are still active?" Saber seemed to peer out for a moment, before opening her eyes, and pointing towards the Archery Dojo. Without further ado, they approached the Dojo, Shirou drew his reinforced sword from his belt, ready for what might come. He couldn't detect Rider, but she could be in Spirit form for all he knew. Saber came up behind him, dissipating her clothing into her armor.

Shirou took a deep breath, reaching out with his senses for any sense of a trap, nothing was forthcoming, but this didn't seem right. If this was the last active seal, did that mean Rider and her Master were there? Saber couldn't sense them, and neither could he, even though his senses were fairly sensitive to magical auras. He tightened the grip on his sword, and made his way forward, reinforcing his eyes to see in the darkness with more clarity. There wasn't anything to see, it was eerily still and quiet.

Shirou approached the dojo's door, there wasn't a padlock where it should have been, suggesting that someone had been using the building recently. Tentatively, he reached out a hand, grasping the handle on the slide door and sliding it open.

The flare of Mana was the only warning Shirou got.

A whip of a black substance shot out from the Dojo, straight towards Shirou's face. A quick lunge back and subsequent interference of Saber was the only thing that spared him from being struck. He hit the ground but rolled on his back to his feet, staring into the darkened building, adrenaline now flooding his system. A flare of Mana from above alerted Shirou to the presence of another Servant, one glance was all he needed, with a curtain of Lavender hair descending towards him and Saber.

"Saber!" He yelled, she apparently detected the foreign presence and turned just in time to deflect Rider, weapon and form away, towards the door of the dojo. She lunged back to stand beside her Master.

Rider held herself in a combative position, nail and chains out before her in defense. Saber held her ground, staring determinedly at the other Servant, Shirou gripped his weapon as well, keeping an eye on the dark entrance of the dojo. Something was in there. Rider looked ready to pounce, but a haughty voice called out from the dojo.

"Hold on, Rider." The voice was familiar to Shirou, and not in a pleasant way, but a grating and burning way that gnawed at this gut. It couldn't be.

A figure stepped out from the shadows of the dojo, and even in the dark of night, Shirou could recognize the arrogant swagger and blue hair of the culprit.

Matou Shinji.

"Hello, Emiya," he said, his voice trying to sound pleasant, an oxymoron to the existence of Shinji. "Nice night out eh?"

Shirou lowered his weapon, but his grip only tightened. "Shinji. So, you're a Master."

He held out his hands in a casual shrug. "It's a strange world we live in, Emiya, never know what you'll find."

Shirou studied Shinji a bit closer, he lacked the school jacket, now clad in a brown coat more suited for the winds. In his hands was a book with scripture and patterns on the cover that Shirou couldn't decipher from a cursory glance. The only other off putting detail about him was the brace around his nose and obvious swelling to his face. Some part of Shirou was elated to see his own handiwork, another part was ashamed to see the result of his anger, rare that it was.

"Sorry to attack you like that, Emiya, I was expecting Tohsaka, or one of the other Masters, didn't mean to put you on edge." Shinji negotiated, or tried to, his insincerity was painful to hear.

"So tell me Shinji, when were you going to activate that bounded field?" Shirou demanded, in no mood for niceties. This was not good, Shinji was the Master of Rider, and therefore, responsible for the Bounded Field, and most likely behind Rider's attack yesterday.

Shinji stopped, but quickly regained his composure. "Well, y'see, I can't supply Rider with Mana myself, and so, in the event of an attack by Tohsaka or whoever, I had Rider put up the bounded field as a defense measure in case anyone came after me."

"Using a bounded field of that design for defense? Surely you jest in poor taste," Saber rebutted, her gaze focused on the stoic Rider. "Adding to the fact that Rider attacked Shirou."

Shinji had the nerve to look apologetic. "That wasn't me, Rider attacked who she sensed was taking apart the bounded field, if I'd had known that she was attacking Emiya-"

"You would have had her finish the job, but instead you called her back. Why?" Shirou asked coldly. The other teen looked dumbstruck for a moment, before he smoothed his features again.

"Hey, I called her back because she was attacking you, Emiya, we were friends before right? Can't I honor that friendship?"

Shirou said nothing, looking back and forth between Rider and Shinji warily, nothing he was saying was adding up. He put up the bounded field with intent of defense, but when his servant defends it, and has an enemy master in her clutches he orders her back? No, Shinji had to have an ulterior motive, even if he was sentimental, he wasn't stupid. He had a chance to kill him, and put an end to a Servant for good, why spare him? And how in the hell did he know it was him? If he didn't have a strong connection with Rider, how could he tell it was him Rider was fighting? He didn't have anything like that with Saber, and odds were that Shinji didn't either.

"I have a proposal, Emiya." Shinji spoke out. Shirou narrowed his eyes.

"Well, what is it?"

"Join up with me, Emiya. We can stake out this war, we don't have to fight anyone, and no one has to get hurt. Between the two of us and our Servants, we can make it," he stuck out his hand. "Whaddya say, Shirou?"

Shirou flinched when his name came from Shinji's lips, he determined that he wouldn't want to hear it ever again. Outside, he kept still and seemed to weigh his options, but inside, he already knew the answer. Shinji was going to activate the bounded field, and people were going to die. No way that could be used in defense and still save face, he'd kill no matter what his reasons or justifications.

"No." Shirou breathed out.

Shinji was silent, his eyes wide as he stared at Shirou in disbelief. He started to chuckle nervously. "C'mon, Emiya, think about it? There's no reason for us to fight, right? Why can't we work together?"

Shirou stepped forward angrily, making Saber and Rider tense. "You can't tell me that something like this bounded field is justified, for defense or otherwise, either way, people are going to get killed just so you can give Rider strength. Besides, that girl she attacked before me was drained dry of Mana, which I'm guessing you granted your blessings to so Rider could be strong enough to defend you."

Shirou raised his sword, eyeing Rider and Shinji warily. "If you don't want this to end badly Shinji, give me your Command Seals, then Kotomine will give you sanctuary for the rest of the war. Your best of option for surviving this war is getting out of it."

Shinji stared in shock for several moments, before he finally regained composure, but the anger and outrage in his eyes confirmed his next action.

"You have a death wish? Fine! KILL THEM RIDER!" He yelled, raising a book by his side, from it, veins of shadow surged out of it towards Shirou. Without even thinking about it, he raised his sword and deflected the shadows. Beside him, Saber and Rider were dueling, Rider using skirmishing tactics to try and weaken Saber defense, but it was clear Rider was only distracting her.

Shirou pushed towards Shinji, whatever these shadows were, they weren't nearly strong enough to even contend with his attacks. The shadows broke once struck with his reinforced blade, dissipating only to be replaced by another vein of them. As he pushed forward, Shinji saw that he was running out of distance, and then ran into the school building in fear. Cursing, Shirou followed. Casting a glance over his shoulder towards Saber, who was more than standing her ground against Rider. He shook his head and followed Shinji.

The building was dark, and with the lack of moonlight Shirou would have been blind if not for his reinforced eyes. He tried to reach out to feel if he could sense Shinji, but then remembered he wouldn't be able to pick him up as easily as Rin or Saber, he didn't have magical energy attached to him. As far as he sensed Shinji was an ordinary human, and he couldn't be picked up by Shirou...but he had felt Mana when Shinji attacked earlier with his book...maybe if he could make him use that book, then he could find him...but how?

He didn't have familiars, and he didn't have skill to make anything akin to duplicates of himself...if that was even possible, odds were that Rin would know of a way... But as it was, he didn't have an answer.

As Shirou continued in the darkness, he felt like a rat in a maze.

A rat in a maze...what if he made a trap?

If he locked all the doors to and from the stairs and entrances and reinforced them...Shinji would have to use the book to break through them. It wasn't a good plan, especially if he tried to reinforce every door and entrance, especially if he simply summoned Rider to get him. Hopefully Saber would keep her busy. But anything was better than trying to hunt for him throughout the whole school. But if Shinji used his book, he'd be able to sense the Mana from it flare.

Shirou set to work, starting at the ground floor, take care to strengthen the windows as well. He knew this plan had no assurance of success, but he did know he didn't have any options aside from hunting him.

He ran through the first floor corridors, strengthening every window and door he could find. Not making them impervious to attacks, but just above practical human strength to break. If nothing else, Shinji would have to alert Shirou to his presence if he wanted to escape the bottom floor. Just as this thought reached his mind, the far door to the stairs was ripped apart by black wisps of shadow. The flare of energy told Shirou it was Shinji.

"Shinji!" Shirou yelled, running down the hallway towards the other teen exiting the stairway. A look of horror and anger crossed his face, he opened the book in his hands.

"Die!" He yelled, black shadows followed the gesture of his hand towards Shirou. The latter raised his sword and swiped the streams of shadows away, not breaking his stride.

Shirou didn't pause to consider how easily defeated the shadows were, nor how twisted the expression Shinji wore was. He was just focused on stopping him and forcing him to end this.

Shinji's horror grew, he haphazardly gestured and more Shadows speared from his book, cracking the floor, creating fissures in the solid tile.

 _Time Alter_.

 _Double Accell_.

Shirou leaped to the side to avoid the shadows and leaped over them, towards Shinji's form. With a bit of a tumble, Shirou emerged from his Bounded Field with Shinji underneath him, his sword's edge found the book, ripping it from his grasp. Shirou then sent his left fist into Shinji's face, sending him down the corridor a few meters.

The shadows dissipated, as was their energy presence, Shinji must have needed direct contact with the book to use them. Shirou deactivated his Bounded Field and approached Shinji's wailing form, it occurred to him that he had punched him in the face again, though this time it was unquestionably justified. Shirou sheathed his sword and walked up the Shinji, hoisting him up by the coat and pushing him against the school corridor.

"H-hey, Emiya, don't hurt me! I'm done, look! I'm helpless!" Shinji sputtered.

"Is the Bounded Field down?" Shirou asked, a dark edge in his voice.

"Y-yeah! There's only one sigil left, and even if Rider didn't deactivate it, it'll die on it's own."

"Good, now, give me your Command Seals." Shirou said, losing none of the steel in his voice.

"What? Are you crazy? Without them I can't control Rider!"

"If you give me your Command Seals, Saber will be able to make short work of her. Now give them up."

Shinji laughed nervously. "C-c'mon, Emiya, we both know you're not that kind of guy."

Shirou narrowed his eyes, he didn't like making threats, but if he didn't get the point across...

"I wouldn't be so sure, Shinji, you're not high on my list of respectful human beings. Besides, if you keep fighting this war, worse people than me are going to come for you, and they won't just kill you, they'll torture you. You have two choices from me, Shinji, either give me your Command Seals, or take the chance of testing me, which also leads you to further chances of death or pain by the hands of other Masters if you manage to get away." Shirou raised him a bit higher on the wall to emphasize his point.

"Now, give me your Command Seals."

Shinji seemed to be considering it, that is until Shirou felt a flare of Mana and Rider's presence grow in proximity. On instinct, Shirou pushed backward, just as the window beside them shattered from outward pressure. Shirou looked up to see there, between him and Shinji, was Rider, facing his direction with a blank look, he stared them both down, gripping his sword with renewed determination.

"What are you waiting for Rider?! Kill him!" Shinji screamed, pointing at Shirou. The latter braced himself for Rider's attack, she had toyed with him before, now though she wouldn't hold anything back.

However, Rider didn't move upon the order. If anything, she seemed stiller than before...What was she waiting for?

Shinji noticed Rider's inaction as well, "What are you doing? Kill him, Rider!"

Without so much as turning her head, Rider let out a low breath, "I cannot do that, Master."

A beat.

"What!?"

"I cannot harm that boy."

Shirou stared in confusion, why in the hell wasn't she attacking? He was right in front of her, and Saber wasn't there to protect him, this was her chance, yet she stood still and immobile before him.

"If you cannot harm him, then defend yourself Rider!" A familiar voice called, Shirou felt a breeze of energy flash from behind him, and then there was Saber, attacking Rider with precise aggression. Rider blocked Saber's strikes with her nails, albeit with much difficulty, she wasn't a match for Saber in hand to hand combat.

Shaking himself, Shirou stood up, he had to take down Shinji and stop this. Now. However, he couldn't get by with Saber and Rider exchanging blows. The odds seemed to be with Saber, more suited to combat in the halls with her straight forward combative style, whereas Rider was purely on defensive. Just as we was about to make his move, Rider lunged back, still in defense and guarding Shinji. Saber halted her advance, noting that going forward left Shirou dangerously open to attack. However, she couldn't let them escape either...perhaps the only way to beat them was to use her sword.

Shirou came to stand beside her, staring ahead at Rider and Shinji, trying to decipher their next move. He noticed Saber tense beside him, but put it out of his mind, they had to stop Rider and Shinji now!

"Saber, if I can get to Shinji, can you handle Rider?" Shirou asked in whisper, wanting to avoid losing the element of surprise.

"Easily."

"Okay, once I give the signal-"

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Rider spoke out, her voice monotone and frank. "In fact, I'd suggest covering your eyes." Rider said, reaching up to the mask over her eyes, and pulling it off.

Shirou stared as the black mask ripped away from Rider's face, revealing her eyes.

Pale eyes that seemed to glitter like diamonds in sunlight, pale and luminous, but also strange to see , in particular their shape. The pupil of the eyes were square, right-angles forming four corners of the pupil surrounded by the iris. It was very odd, and if Shirou hadn't had his eyes reinforced, he would've thought it was a trick of the darkness, but no, her pale eyes that glittered like jewels were coveting a square pupil. They were oddly beautiful Shirou thought, but his thoughts were suddenly taken over by the feeling of stiffness in his body. He was trying to step back, but his body and muscles refused to move.

No, not refusing, unable.

Shirou realized the blood pounding in his head was slowing, stilling, and to his horror it, his thoughts began to halt and still. The last thought he had, was that this stillness felt like stone.

Saber flinched from Rider's gaze, Mystic Eyes, concealed by the mask that acted as a Bounded Field for her eyes, nullifying their affects. Thanks to her Magical Resistance, Saber only suffered minuscule affects, all her attributes in combat would be decreased, but she should be able to defeat Rider seamlessly. Except...

"Shirou!" Saber leaped back, covering Shirou's eyes, and covering his body with her own. Her thoughts were that if she could cut all visual contact, Shirou might be able to escape the effects of the Mystic Eyes, however Shirou didn't seem be getting better, even with his eyes closed. His body was getting heavier and stiffer by the minute. It was at this moment, that Saber knew who this Servant was. Only one figure of past and myth came to mind that could fit this picture.

"Medusa," Saber uttered, noting no significant change in expression in the Servant's face. "Stop this, now."

"Let us go, Saber, and I will." Rider said, offering no room for argument.

"I can't do that." Saber stood, she needed to end this quickly, before Shirou was lost to her.

"Then, you'll have to endure your Master turn to stone."

"That will not happen," Saber raised her sword, unraveling the invisible air, she couldn't use the full power of her Noble Phantasm here, the power would destroy the school, and potentially injure or kill Shirou in the process. Saber wasn't going to submit to those odds. Maybe she couldn't use her full strength, but she could use some of it's energy, like with Berserker, she had used some of her blade's energy to take one of his lives. It could be enough to defeat Rider, if not that, then force her to disengage. "I cannot allow you to continue to harm people, nor can I allow you to escape unimpeded."

Rider's eyes widened considerably, even with their affects, Saber's attack would be enough to damage her or force her to retreat. While her escaping wasn't preferable, she didn't have much of a choice.

Saber raised her sword, pointed towards Rider and her scrap of a Master, her blade began glowing gold and illuminating the inside of the school with the intensity of the sun. She concentrated her Mana into the blade, letting the energy spew forth in a golden light. It sped towards Rider, and would have enveloped her, however, at the last moment, Rider seemed to stab her neck, and a great white figure appeared, upon it, Rider and her Master sat on, and disappeared as the golden light reached them.

The light dissipated, leaving behind a hallway that was scorched and warped from her blade, an exit point at the end of it showed the darkness of the outside. Saber allowed the invisible air to over take her sword, effectively sheathing it. Then she collapsed to her knees, cursing under her breath, Saber stood shakily to her feet, using her sword as a support.

It was as she feared, she was running out of energy to sustain herself. To have lasted this long without support of a Mage's Mana was both miraculous and unfortunate. With Saber's Mana reserves she had lasted thus long with only a few battles of note between her summoning and now. But having unwound the Invisible Air and using her Weapon twice now, especially with Mystic Eyes upon her, Saber knew she was running out of time.

For their next battle, Saber would either have to defeat Rider without her Noble Phantasm, or Shirou would have to find a way to help correct the fragile bond between them. But, given her limited knowledge of Magecraft, such a thing would either take too much time...or would cross too steep of lines for her to accept. Pushing off her sword, Saber's armor dematerialized leaving her in her casual clothing. She turned to inspect Shirou's prone unconscious form, and sighed with relief, he was breathing normally, and his body had returned to it's normal state, leaving him in good condition.

As she picked him up, and hoisted his arm over her shoulder, Saber couldn't help but smile lightly at the look on his face. Gone was the furrowed brow of concentration and dedication to his goals, instead was a peaceful and content expression, one that seemed precious to Saber. Briefly, she wondered what he was like before all this, what was he like before Kiritsugu found him? Did he smile more often then, had he been happy? Or as grimly determined as he was now?

Saber didn't know, and she supposed that right now it didn't matter. What did was getting him back home to recover. Rider's defeat would have to wait.

 **Author's Note-**

 **10/20/15**

 **Hey all! It's been awhile, about a month in a half, I do apologize for that, College is having fun playing with my time, but I am grateful to be able to go to it nonetheless.**

 **As for this chapter, I was going to cut it after the end of the school day, but I figured that it'd be too short so I added the confrontation with Rider and Shinji at the end. Felt it was for the best to get this story rolling. Plus, I really wanted to get more of Shirou taking on Shinji, I do apologize for not including a fight with Rider and Saber, rest assured, that will be coming next time.**

 **As for why Saber didn't use the full extent of her Noble Phantasm this time, for one, inside a building and the damage to the structure would potentially kill Shirou, especially if Saber was unable to help him. She doesn't suffer from the cursed wound that Lancer inflicted on her in Canon, but using a portion of her Mana to use a lesser extent of her NP twice I would imagine weakening her. Granted, she can still fight and get one strike off, but otherwise, it's like Fate route where Saber would pass out simply charging up her NP for an attack, so actually using some of that energy would still be weakening her faster, granted, she won't be in too terrible of shape after the battle of Rider, but she certainly won't be at her peak either. You'll just have to see.**

 **Why night battle at school? Because, despite how much I loathe Shinji, I think he could see that trying to pull something at the school with Shirou and Rin there would be phenomenally stupid, especially with their classes of Servants, even if the Field keeps them out, they can still be summoned inside via Command Seal. So, yeah, Shinji plays it a bit safe this time around. And no, he does not know about Rider sparing Shirou due to Sakura's orders, but he plays it off in a way to try and warm up to him...And you see how well that turns out.**

 **Also, I wanted to tear up the school a bit so that Shirou and Rin have no reason to go there, it was so weird that they were fighting the Grail War and still going to school during that time, so with Saber practically blowing out the first floor hallway and other damages due to her battle with Rider, I imagine they'd close for a bit.**

 **I also apologize if the first half of the Chapter was too High School genre, I kind wanted a lighter tone for the first half of the chapter...and it turned fairly angsty huh, never let me write a fanfiction with the setting in high school. Mostly, it was me playing with Saber being a student and how that goes. I liked the idea of having Saber and Kuzuki argue about Chivalry, it was a welcome bit for me as a history buff to read up on and explore the different respective warrior culture of Western and Easter Feudal systems.**

 **Also, Saber and Motorcyle. Enough said.**

 **Finally, I hope it's apparent that Saber reciprocates Shirou's budding feelings, even if only a little bit.**

 **In any case, I hope to get the next chapter our soon, I am currently taking a bit of a creative break, but hopefully the chapter arrives before Thanksgiving. I think my goal for lengths of Chapters will probably be between 5,000 and 10,000 words, so as to flesh out scenes properly.**

 **Till next time!**

 **-ArgoGladius**


	9. Master and Servant

On a grassy hill beneath a clouded sky, stood a figure upon it, sword drawn and resting in the ground as the figure gazed towards the sunset in the distance. The wind blew around the figure, swirling the grass at its feet, and the cloak upon their shoulder.

Shirou tried to move himself closer to get a better look at the figure, in the back of his mind the unknown person seemed to be familiar. He made to move forward, but found the soft breeze turned to hard air, driving into him with a violent surge. Caught off guard for a moment, Shirou nearly fell, but he then pushed forward, fighting with all his might to push through the wind that seemed to hold him back. The more he pushed, the more the wind pushed back, so much so that Shirou's eyes stung with the sharp winds flowing into them as he made his way towards the figure. A strong need to find out who they were.

Shirou and the wind found themselves at a standstill, the former pushing with all his strength, while the latter met his force with all its fury. An immovable object met an unstoppable force as the man struggled against the elements to meet this figure. Slowly, Shirou realized that he was beginning to rise from his sleep, the image before him blurring at the edges, and his legs and arms began to feel immobile at his sides. He strained to remain unconscious, to no avail, someone was shaking him, and dimly he heard his name called.

Just before the dream was lost, Shirou heard a voice call from outside of his vision.

"My Lord-!" The figure turned, revealing Golden hair cut at the shoulder, with calm green eyes turning toward the voice, only very briefly meeting Shirou's...

They were Saber's.

* * *

"-wake up, or I'll be moving in here."

Instantly, Shirou sat up in panic at hearing Rin's voice. Only to wince when his body burned at the action. Opening his eyes turned out to be a mistake as well, they burned as if smoke had been blown into them.

After a few seconds, the pain receded, and Shirou focused his gaze to see the inside of his room, with Rin sitting to his side, looking annoyed but also amused. The light suggested it was close to noon, and Shirou had to wonder why he was in bed and why he and Rin weren't at school yet, then it all came back to him in a flash.

Shinji. Rider. The battle at the school, and Rider's eyes. He had felt his body stiffen and begin to harden, and then, he had lost consciousness.

How did he end up here? And what happened to Saber? Shirou began to get up, but his body ached from the action.

"Hold up," Rin said, placing surprisingly gentle hands on his shoulders. "You need to take it easy, Rider's Mystic Eyes did a number on your body, a few seconds later, and you probably would have become a statue."

Shirou frowned in confusion. "Statue?"

"Turns out that Rider is Medusa, the Gorgon, with eyes that can turn people into stone. You got to feel some of that affect last night." Rin said, releasing her hands and sitting back, she handed him a cup of water.

Shirou took the cup, but didn't drink, some bubble of paranoia began to well up inside him. If he had gotten out somehow, then where was Saber? Did she escape Rider's gaze? As he was about to ask Rin, she cut him off.

"And before you ask, Saber's fine, she fought off Rider and Shinji, then brought you back here." She finished, and Shirou breathed a sigh of relief, drinking the water in the cup calmly, and easing himself down. Letting his body adjust to the after-effects of the Mystic Eyes, well, the minor affects.

"Where is she?" Shirou asked.

"In the Dojo." She said shortly.

Shirou stared at her, something was up, Rin was never this short in her explanations, was it that she was still angry about their argument yesterday? Or was it the fact that Rider got away? Well, if she was angry about that, she wouldn't have been so gentle with him when he woke up.

"You should get dressed." She said, standing and leaving. Odd, leaving without some form of insult or snark, Shirou wondered what was eating at the other Mage, but he let it go, he had to talk with Saber and figure out what to do with Rider.

He started to get up, and then his stomach growled. Looks like making breakfast was the first thing on the agenda.

* * *

Rider leaned against a pillar in her casual civilian clothing, she was out in public to her discomfort, but her 'Master' insisted on finding another place to put up the Bloodfort. In truth, Rider didn't need the Mana-consuming Bounded Field, with her true Master providing her more than enough Mana, but as she and Sakura discussed, if Shinji knew he had the full reign of Rider's abilities, he would not hesitate to use them. As it was, feigning her weakened state was a good diversionary tactic to keep Shinji and his plans subdued, both in scope and anonymity; thus, far only Saber and her Master seemed to be interested in engaging them. While it was simple to deal with one enemy pair, it was unfortunate it was Saber, with her high magical resistance, and the Command Seal that forbade her from harming Saber's Master, Rider could only beat her in single-combat, and while not impossible, would be excessively difficult.

Rider let out a huff of irritation, breaking her quiet posing, a few people turned to look upon her as they passed, not used to seeing such a unique-looking foreigner. It didn't bother her, but she'd prefer to avoid being noticed, however Shinji for one reason or another didn't trust her to protect him in Spirit Form so had her materialize for the time-being.

"Rider?" Came the voice of Rider's Master across their bond.

"Yes, Sakura?" Rider responded, betraying nothing on the exterior front.

"Shinji is trying to make you create a new Bloodfort isn't he?" She asked with evident worry.

"Yes, he's trying to set it up in the Financial District in the city, good place as any, but I doubt we will have enough time to erect it." Rider assessed.

A brief flash of confusion and curiosity leaked over from Rider's bond with Sakura. "What do you mean, Rider?"

"As I told you last night, we fought Saber and her Master. I can only imagine that they'll track us down soon. Both of them are tenacious and strong-willed to a fault, but it serves to their virtues."

"Rider, we talked about this..." Sakura warned.

"Master, I know. I am not to harm the Masters of Saber and Archer, and you already lectured my use of the Mystic Eyes on them last night. I won't put the boy or girl in harm's way, I swear that to you, even if I don't know why." Rider said, her Master went silent, she could imagine the girl biting her lip in thought, though she knew she wouldn't get an answer.

"Rider, please-"

"Sakura, it's alright. I don't know your reasons for keeping silent, but as your Servant, I shall respect them," Rider assured, speaking as a mother would to placate a child. "All I ask, is that you tell me the truth whenever possible, I trust you, Sakura, but that trust must go both ways."

Sakura was silent for a few moments, before quietly responding, "Thank you, Medusa."

The Servant smiled, feeling the mental link between the two of them close for now. Rider returned to her idle physical state leaning against a wall, not a moment later Shinji appeared, a scowl marring his features. With the scowl, bags under his eyes, the bruise under his eye and the brace on his nose, Rider thought he looked to be a sorry sight, she wasn't surprised that passing people gave him a wide berth.

"C'mon Rider, we're going." He snapped irritably.

Rider followed him wordlessly, a bitter taste in her mouth at following his commands, but hopefully he'd see the futility in his role and revoke the right of Master back to Sakura. In which case, she could enjoy an element of satisfaction in conversing with and spending time with Sakura. Despite her role as her Master, the girl treated Rider as if she were an older sibling, going out of her way to treat her like a friend.

Medusa almost smiled at the thought, she and Sakura truly were well matched as Servant and Master respectively. They both had suffered in life, and both weren't the strongest in terms of prowess, but Rider knew she would protect Sakura. And she would rather die than let any harm fall upon the young girl. One who had suffered as much as her deserved a life of happiness above all else.

* * *

"Saber, are you alright? You're not eating very much." Saber looked at Shirou then down to her unfinished helping of rice.

"Yes, I apologize, Shirou, I was lost in thought." She said, lifting the bowl and eating with poise and grace as she usually did, if a bit slower.

Shirou shot a slightly concerned gaze her way, but turned away to take back some dishes to the sink, Rin simply sat across from her also eating without her usual gusto. While she couldn't speak for the other Mage, Saber wondered if the distant look in Rin's eyes were that of guilt.

Upon returning the previous night, Rin had gone silent when Saber brought Shirou inside the house, when they had treated Shirou's injuries before there had been no small amount of cursing and mumbling on her part. Yet this time, Rin was quiet as they took care of Shirou and laid him to rest. Since last night she hadn't said a word to Saber, she could tell it wasn't animosity, but something else, more akin to guilt or remorse. For what reason, Saber could guess, but she couldn't tell for sure.

As for herself, Saber was trying to consider her options. With the partial use of her Noble Phantasm the night before, she had weakened herself more than she had thought. While she could still produce Prana on her own still, it was less so than before. Where she had fought Lancer and Berserker before at full strength, now she knew that in a prolonged conflict she could hold out, but she was unsure as to whether she could win. If she caught Lancer with a weak defense, she was sure she could end him with a good blow, whereas a Servant such as Berserker would need all she had at full strength and the full use of her Noble Phantasm. To say nothing of the fact that Caster and Assassin were the only Servants they had not yet encountered yet.

In a battle with Rider, Saber was confident she could defeat her without the use of her Noble Phantasm, even if she unveiled the Mystic Eyes on her. In the battle the night before, she had had the upper hand in combat until Rider had retreated unexpectedly, forcing her to follow. She may not have been significantly combat suited as Saber was, but she was swift if nothing else. Hopefully, when they met again, she could end it decisively.

"So, Emiya, what are you going to do about Rider?" Rin asked seriously, though in Saber's mind it was to alleviate the uncomfortable silence that had been growing due to her brooding and Saber's internal analysis.

Shirou took his spot next to Saber before answering.

"Well, you said they canceled school?"

"On account of the first level entrance hall being all but destroyed, and the need to repair it...yes. School will be out for a while I imagine."

"Then Saber and I can start looking for Rider and Shinji." Shirou said without an iota of hesitation. Saber raised a brow and Rin looked a bit unnerved as well.

"That's...oddly forward of you, Shirou." Saber noted.

"Look, it's not like we have much of a choice here. Shinji is out there, and so long as he is, Rider is going to set up another Bounded Field. And I'll be damned if I let that happen."

Rin whistled lowly and slouched forward with a smirk. "Well whaddya know? Emiya is growing into a Master all on his own."

"Anyways, do you know where we should start looking, Tohsaka?"

"Given how the original Bounded Field was set up, I'd say pretty much any tall building that can house a lot of people on a regular basis, of course being in a city doesn't narrow that down very much." Rin said after a moment's thought.

"Okay, then, Saber, would you be able to detect Rider even if she moved locations?"

"The Bounded Field may be in a different location, but I would be able to detect Rider's hand in it simply."

Shirou nodded. "Okay, we'll start looking after I clean up." He said, picking up the dishes and taking them into the kitchen. Saber was standing up to help when Rin shot her a glance.

"Saber? A word please?" She asked in a whispered tone, Saber nodded after a moment's hesitation. Quietly she followed Rin to the other side of the estate where Rin erected a small Bounded Field to keep any eavesdroppers none the wiser.

While perturbed, Saber trusted Rin enough to know that she didn't have any ill-will towards her, nor any malicious intentions. She quietly sat, waiting for Rin to begin.

Shooting a glance towards the door once again, Rin spoke. "Saber, is Emiya...alright?"

Saber frowned. "How do you mean, Rin?"

"It's just that, he's been short with everything all morning, I was wondering if anything else happened that you didn't fill me in on." She asked, while it was fair, Saber detected a prominent amount of concern in her tone.

"No, Rin. I've told you all that transpired last night with our confrontation with Rider. I know of nothing else that would have affected Shirou so." Saber responded.

Rin nodded and started to think it over in her head.

"Why do you wish to know, Rin?" Saber asked.

"He's my ally, the Mage I'm sharing strategies and space with. I have a right to know if something is screwing with him."

"Fair. The only thing I can think of is the revelation that Shinji is Rider's Master. Despite their strained relationship. I can only imagine it was hard on Shirou to endure." Saber said.

"True, Matou didn't have any presence as a Mage, but even then, I wouldn't have imagined he'd do something like this in the war, even as a Master. A Bounded Field like that drains the inhabitant's Mana pretty damn quickly, it's hard to believe Shinji would do something like that. It seems so out of character." Rin mused, her eyes going distant in thought.

"Fear creates Monsters out of us all." Was all that Saber said.

Rin nodded slowly, leaning back on her heals and assuming her thinking posture.

"Any news on Caster?"

The Magus shook her head. "Not a whole lot, we think we're getting close, but we can't rush into a potential hideout without backup, or planning. Otherwise we might get clobbered in seconds."

"You doubt your Servant's abilities?"

"Not at all, but when it comes to Caster class, airing on the side of caution is our best bet. When Rider is taken care of and you're able, then we'll confront the Bastard." Rin said with determination.

Saber flinched internally, defeating Rider was no issue in straight forward combat. As for Caster, despite Saber's high magical resistance, if the battle was anything like the previous war, nothing short of her Noble Phantasm would could end it. While her pride was on the line, the Servant knew that Rin was trustworthy, and needed to know. Especially in the event of needing an alternative to recharging Mana.

"Rin, I have something to tell you."

* * *

Lancer wandered the grounds of the School grounds in Spirit form, in order to avoid attention of other Servants who may be prowling nearby, and the humans who were investigating the damages. They were called "cops" and while Lancer had no qualms on taking them on, even in broad daylight, he knew that Kotomine would throw a fit and use another Command Seal on him, and how the Irish Hero hated those damn Seals. They kept him from fighting to his full potential on the first night, now they were the chain to his collar that Kotomine had been using to keep him in line. So, Lancer forced himself to swallow his pride and inspected the battle scene from the night before.

For what he could tell, Rider and Saber had been the combatants, their smells heavy in the air. From the severed branches of trees and upturned sections in the earth, it looked like the two had went at it vigorously. While disappointed that he hadn't finished his fight with the two of them, he knew that at the very least he'd have a chance at taking on the victor of their battles. Neither had been reported defeated, so both were still active.

Inspecting the grounds further, Lancer moved to the other side of the building, if he were in his physical state he would have smirked at the sight. Where there was once a wall and window in the building, there was a large hole, Lancer knew it had to be from a Noble Phantasm, from the scent it gave off, he deduced that Saber was the one who had cast it.

"That woman unveiled her sword huh?" He pondered, looking down the hall to see the hallway leading to the hole was scorched and partially melted. Though from what his nose could detect, the Hound could tell that flames were not used.

Before he could look into the battle field further, a voice shot across the reluctant bond he shared with his Master.

" _Lancer, return to the Church at once. I have an assignment for you_." Kotomine said with his usual drawl.

Lancer growled in annoyance. "Alright, heading back."

Arriving back at the Church, Lancer materialized before the Priest in the forefront of the building, he began to wonder if Kotomine even slept.

"Well, whaddya want from me?" Kotomine looked at him with his usual expression, seeming uninterested.

"I have reason to believe that Caster has taken refuge at Ryuddou Temple, she is collecting a concerning amount of mana there."

"Makes sense, it's on one of the ley lines of Fuyuki, right?" Lancer received a short grunt for Kotomine. "I guess she's building up her strength to take on Berserker, or even Saber-"

"That's irrelevant, as I did not ask for your input," Kotomine interrupted briskly, still staring away from Lancer, as if he was so above the hero he did not have to respect his presence with eye-contact. "Your task is to watch the temple, keep track of who comes in and out, and see if you can spot Caster leaving or going as well."

"Then take her out?"

Kotomine chuckled sardonically. "If you couldn't defeat her while she was wounded, how can you hope to defeat her in your state?"

"Let me off your fucking leash and find out." Lancer growled, not liking how this guy kept poking at his pride. Kotomine shot him a look over his shoulder, a slight smirk on his face.

"Tempting, but for now Caster needs to live in order to combat Berserker should the time come. All I need from you, is to watch the temple grounds from outside it's bounded field. Or can you not even do that properly?" He asked, turning to find Lancer already gone. He smirked, toying with the warrior was truly amusing, like keeping a dog's favorite treat from them, prolonging their desire for it.

* * *

Shirou put on his shoes and sheathed his reinforced shinai, anxious to get going. After seeing what Rider was capable of first hand, and the extremes Shinji was willing to go...he knew he couldn't let it continue, not at the expense of others.

"Saber! Are you ready?" Shirou called, somewhat curious about what Rin and Saber were talking about.

A few moments later two soft footsteps sounded in the house, revealing Rin and Saber, the latter with her usual composed expression, while Rin had a troubled look on her face. Scratch that, more troubled look than before, like something was really concerning her now. Shirou considered asking her about what was wrong, but thought better of it, odds were that it was something personal, and if she decided to confide in Saber about it then she must have her reasons. Besides, if he brought it up, she would just flatly deny anything, that's how Tohsaka Rin worked.

"Ready to go?" Shirou asked Saber, who nodded firmly and began to place her boots on. Rin stood a few feet away, thinking about something intently.

"Shirou, are we going to be using the Motorcycle again today?" Saber asked as she wrapped her scarf around her neck. Wordlessly, Shirou handed her the keys, and followed her out the door.

"Emiya." Rin called before Shirou could close the door.

"Yeah?" He asked, noticing how both calm and nervous Rin looked as she regarded him, her posture was straight and confident, but she bit the corner of her lip anxiously...What was up with her?

"J-just be careful alright?

...What? Did Rin just tell them to be careful, and on top of that with definite concern, what was going on here? Shirou looked back at Saber, but she was out getting the Motorcycle in the drive way.

"Are you worried about something, Tohsaka?" He asked genuinely, but unfortunately if came out somewhat cocksure. And that only made Rin stiffen up.

"As if!" She said in a haughty tone, turning her nose up and to the side, fixing him with a one-eyes stare. "I just don't want to lose this war, and if I lose Saber and her Master this war will be a lot tougher. So, if things get too hot, get out of there and find Archer and I, we'll be in the outskirts of town, tracking Caster." She said and turned down the hall, leaving a confused and slightly abashed Shirou in her wake.

Walking out the door, Shirou approached Saber and sat behind her as she keyed the ignition. The engine roared to life and Saber sat herself down comfortably, balancing the bike with her planted legs.

"Where to Shirou?" Saber asked, handing him a helmet, slipping her own despite not having a need for it.

"Let's head to the school first, start from there and see if we can pick up a trail of sorts."

"Very good," She said, revving the engine before casting a look back. "Shirou, grasp my waist, you'll have more support that way."

"R-right." Shirou said as he complied, wrapping his arms around Saber's thin, but evidently muscular torso.

Knowing he was secured, Saber started the engine and began to drive into the city. It was just about high noon, giving the pair plenty of time to find the new building and disable it. Perhaps even lay in wait for Rider and Shinji.

Arriving at the school in only a few minutes, Saber informed Shirou that she could faintly detect Rider's magic aura, and that it led into the city, but after that it became much less clear. They tracked the trail into the heart of the city, but after that it just disappeared, or as Saber had put it 'dispersed'. Eventually the pair decided to dismount and proceed on foot without hindrance of traffic.

Saber and Shirou searched the prime suspects in locations, the Hospital, the financial buildings, apartments, and so on. Ultimately, their goals wielded nothing, Saber was having trouble picking up Rider's trail, despite its distinction, it was tricky to follow especially given how faint it was. And with all these other people around, it made the search all the more difficult.

Despite having started early in the day, the hours had clocked away until the afternoon began to decline into sunset. Shirou grumbled in annoyance, they'd been scouring the city all day and nothing had been presented. Realistically he understood such a large city was hard to scout out in a single day for a particular building, but the reality of the situation was that the longer it took to find Rider and Shinji, the more time they had to set up another bounded field and the more time they had to prepare for them.

Eventually, the sun set, and the city life began to slow down, Shirou found himself tiring, despite having stopped to eat twice at Saber's insistence, he evidently was still exhausted by the events of the previous night. Still, he pushed himself, every second he spent resting, every second Rider claimed another victim.

Saber stopped where she stood, Shirou looked back at her in question.

"Saber?"

"Shirou, as much as you wish to stop Rider and her Master, for now, I suggest that we retire for the night."

"I can't do that, Saber." Shirou said, turning away from the blonde woman.

"And pray tell why?"

He let out a sigh through his mouth. "I'm sure you can guess."

Saber's expression remained unchanged, "You don't wish to see anyone else come to harm." She stated.

Shirou didn't confirm or deny it, but Saber knew regardless. He waited for a scolding or lecture, instead he received a warm hand on his shoulder. Turning, he glanced at Saber who wore a warm and sympathetic expression.

"Shirou, I understand. You want to protect as many people as you can, but you cannot protect anyone if you're about to drop from exhaustion. Before anyone can be saved, you must be in peak condition to protect, and that requires food and good rest." Saber said, she didn't adopt a scowl or a stern lecture like Rin would, instead she was warm and understanding. Shirou felt like following her advice, but he also knew that anyone, least of all heroes, didn't always get to choose to best time to help anyone, you either were there and did, or didn't. In this case, the red-headed teen would push on.

"Saber, I appreciate what you're trying to say, but-" Saber wasn't listening, she was staring up at the building ahead of them, her previous open expression was hardened. Suddenly, Saber called forth her armor, her hands clutching on the grip of her invisible sword.

"Rider," Saber practically growled. Shirou followed her gaze to see the Servant they had been hunting, hanging on the wall like a spider, her masked gaze was on them though she did nothing. In the young Master's mind, the image of those square irises came back, how deadly and strangely beautiful they had been. Shirou shook his head as Saber addressed him, "Shirou, I am going to defeat Rider. If you can, find her Master, if not, retire to safety until Rider has been dealt with."

Before Shirou could argue, Saber had lunged from their location, straight towards where Rider waited. Instantly nail and chain met invisible blade as the two Servants skirted up the building, battling each other for the killing strike. Instantly the red-head was sprinting towards the building, already thinking about where to find Shinji.

* * *

Saber leapt up the side of the building in strides, eyes focused solely on her opponent, after their battle the night before she knew what to expect. Rider threw a nail towards her, Saber side-stepped, bringing her sword down on the chain and wrapping it around the invisible blade, a look towards her opponent almost made her smirk. Despite the mask, Rider's expression was shocked, and then Saber jerked her blade to pull the other servant from their position on the building.

The blindfolded servant was pulled from her place and straight down to Saber, untangling her blade and preparing for a strike. Rider however was able to maneuver just in time and deflected the blade away from herself with a strike from her nail, slipping under and behind Saber's form. The warrior pivoted, swinging her blade behind her to strike where Rider was, the nimble servant dodged, albeit barely. Her chain relinquished from Saber's sword, Rider jumped up two stories, and began to crawl her way to the top of the building. Saber pursued, taking deep strides after the enemy servant.

Rider looked down to see how close her opponent was gaining and cursed, even with her agility, Saber would overtake her eventually and even on flat terrain she knew her abilities to defeat the other servant weren't good. The only way she could possibly win this battle, was through using her Noble Phantasm. A grin formed on Rider's face, this battle would be over shortly.

Saber continued to follow Rider, caught off-guard when her opponent leaped off the face of the building and struck at her with her sandaled feet. Saber grunted, being forced down a level, but nowhere near finished with her adversary.

"You're not one for a battle on high-grounds, are you, Saber?" Rider asked, a slight smirk on her face.

Saber leveled a glare at the other servant, "High ground means nothing if one is not poised to hold it."

Rider chuckled, "Bold words, let us see if they hold true." The lavender-haired servant struck again, only to be repulsed by Saber, managing to cut through one of her black bracers. Blood now dripped down Rider's hand.

Saber smirked, "Indeed."

Rider growled and attacked again.

* * *

Shirou cursed as the elevator dropped him on the highest floor, still not at the top of the building. The doors had barely opened before he sprinted out of them and into the hallway, searching for a stairway to the roof, if Shinji was going to be anywhere, it would be at the top of the building, furthest from him. The redheaded Magus found the exit, going through it, pausing only to reinforce the door in the event Shinji slipped by him. Shirou pulled his sword from the ring on his belt, and opened the door to the roof.

A tendril of black shadow made a swipe for him, and Shirou lunged forward, rolling into a crouch and swinging his sword at where the tendril had missed him. The shadow dissolved at the touch of the reinforced weapon. However, another tendril took its place, striking Shirou in the back. Sending him collapsing to the ground. He rolled to the side, avoiding the tendril's second attack, slicing it with his sword, as before it dissipated.

He looked around himself, looking for both another tendril and for its caster, however both were absent. Instead, Shirou saw something he didn't expect.

Saber was on the roof, maybe twenty meters in front of him, and staring her down, was Rider on a glowing white Pegasus. Shirou was stunned, it must be her Noble Phantasm he though dimly.

"Shirou!" Saber exclaimed, shocked to see him there, and now realizing her fight was far more desperate.

Shirou tensed when he heard Shinji's laughter from somewhere in the shadows. "Well, now that we're all here, I guess it's time for the final curtain call. Rider, kill them both."

Rider looked down and vaguely nodded. Petting her mount.

Saber looked once more between Shirou and Rider, with great reservation, she raised her sword. The invisible air unwinding, revealing her sword.

* * *

Rider petted the Pegasus, knowing now was the time to end Saber, she had unwound the invisible air around her sword, and she would attack soon. The masked woman petted the divine beast, it was now or never.

"BELLEROPHON!" Rider called, releasing all the energy the divine beast carried, charging Saber's prone form. Nothing could stop her once the charge was started.

As she descended on her mount, Rider noticed something that shook her train of thought, the boy master of Saber, Shirou, had tried to get closer to his servant, however the wind that had coated her sword had blown out. The boy had been blown back by the wind and now toppled back towards the edge of the building, his servant unaware of the situation.

Shirou tumbled off the edge of the building, frantically trying to grip the edge of the roof, only to lose it and fall off the building.

Panic went through Rider's bond with Sakura, the power of a command spell rushed through her, "By the power of my command seal-!"

* * *

The first thing Shirou noticed as he fell was his weightlessness, then the panic set in when he saw the ground below him begin to drawn closer as he fell through the night air. For one of the few times he could truly recall, Shirou's mind shut down, thought and problem solving vacated his mind as panic overtook him and his thoughts. His only thoughts were on impact of the ground as he fell towards it. he raised his arms to protect his head as he fell. He closed his eyes and let one thought get through the endless panic in his mind.

Saber.

Then, two arms wrapped around his midsection and with inhuman grace, slowed his descent. Just as soon as his fall had been stopped, Shirou felt his guts drop when he was suddenly pulled upwards. He opened eyes, fully expecting Saber to be there, pulling him back up to the rooftop, however, he was surprised to see the masked face of Rider. It was then he caught the feeling of a temple's reverence and the faint smell of incense.

"Rider?" Shirou asked in disbelief, knowing this had to be some warp of reality. Why would she save him?

Rider turned her head, as if to acknowledge his question, but said nothing.

The next moment, the feeling of her arms and presence vanished, and Shirou fell to the ground of the building's roof. When he looked up, Rider was gone, and he spotted Saber where she had been when he was thrown from the roof.

"No!" A panicked voice screeched, Shirou turned to see the face of Matou Shinji, illuminated by the flames of his burning grimoire. "My commander spells!" In seconds the book was ashes, and Shinji looked at Shirou, before fleeing through the rooftop's exit.

Shirou would have followed, but the collapsing form of Saber drew his attention, and he went to her immediately. The first thing he felt, was the usually potent and strong aura of strength Saber gave off was dim and fading, as if she was…

"No! Saber, come on!" Shirou cried in panic shaking his servant to bring her to consciousness, however she remained prone and unconscious.

Shirou cradled Saber to his chest, unwilling tears were falling down his cheeks. He knew he couldn't lose her, not for him, not for anyone else. It was then that Shirou realized something profound, what he felt for Saber. And that made him even more desperate to keep her by his side.

 **~ Author's Note**

 **Yes, it's been a year and a half, and I finished this chapter in the last two days.**

 **I will say my absence involved a great deal of writers' block, and insecurity given the amount of people who have criticized my efforts on this fic, some want it to follow canon, others want it to be original. Which we'll start getting to should I continue.**

 **Ultimately, I decided to finish this chapter for the people who wanted a new chapter for awhile and were waiting patiently. So, this is for you all. I'm not sure if I'll be able to continue on this fic much if at all, because I'm in the middle of writing books, as well as other projects. So, I wanted to get this out, may pick up this fic again, but until then I just wanted to thank everyone who followed, reviewed and favorited this story. It means a lot that I've written something you guys enjoy, despite my anxiety with other fans, thank you all.**

 **Till next time,**

 **ArgoGladius**


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